Fusobacterium necrophorum often causes severe sore throats in young adults


In an analysis of 312 college students at UAB's Student Health Clinic, investigators found that F. necrophorum was detected in more than 20 percent of patients with sore-throat symptoms, against only 10 percent for Group A strep and 9 percent for Group C or G strep.

"This is the first study in the United States that shows that F. necrophorum causes a significant number of cases of pharyngitis in this young adult population," said Robert M. Centor, M.D., professor in the Division of General Internal Medicine in the UAB School of Medicine and the study's lead author. "It is also the first to show that F. necrophorum pharyngitis and streptococcus pharyngitis share similar clinical signs. This study bolsters our understanding that this condition is common in the U.S. and very closely resembles strep throat."

Centor says that F. necrophorum pharyngitis is the leading cause of a rare but potentially very dangerous condition known as the Lemierre's syndrome. The syndrome affects mostly adolescents and young adults and is seen rarely in pre-adolescents. It often causes long, complex hospitalizations requiring intensive care, and about 6 percent of those contracting the Lemierre's syndrome die.

Group A strep can also cause a serious disease, rheumatic fever, which remains common in many parts of the developing world, but is now rare in the U.S. The rapid test for strep and aggressive treatment with antibiotics have contributed to rheumatic fever's decline in this country. Centor says F. necrophorum warrants the same consideration.

"It is not just about strep throat in this 15-30 age group," said Centor. "Physicians have to consider F. necrophorum, which in our study caused more sore throats than strep. And F. necrophorum is itself associated with a potentially devastating complication, which while rare, is a more common side effect that acute rheumatic fever."


"I read an article about F. necrophorum in the BBC news in 2002, and I became fascinated by this bacterium that once had been the cause of this very devastating disease but had become forgotten for perhaps 30 years," Centor said. "I started following the literature and discovered that F. necrophorum had recently been identified in Europe as a cause of endemic pharyngitis in adolescents and young adults."


"For an infection caused by F. necrophorum, aggressive therapy with antibiotics is appropriate, as the bacterium responds well to penicillin and other antibiotics," said Centor. "We suspect that many physicians would prescribe antibiotics for patients with F. necrophorum pharyngitis if there were a point-of-care diagnostic test that proved its presence."



"This is the first step in a series of studies that need to be done to define the prevalence and extent of F. necrophorum and how it presents clinically," Centor said. "A very important next step is to develop a practical and affordable point-of-care test for F. necrophorum."


University of Alabama at Birmingham


  1. Kari Anderson Kari Anderson United States says:

    My son has sore throats all the time, but it comes up negative for strep.Hhe's scheduled to get his tonsils out on Aug 26th, does he need to do that if he has this infection?  What kind of doctor will do tests for it, and what is the medicine he needs to take?

  2. Geri London UK Geri London UK United Kingdom says:

    Initially I had symptoms similar to a head cold, not a flu, just before Christmas 2014. It started like a head cold, then I lost my voice for about a week but felt physically fine, I was still going to work etc but then I started sleeping 16 hours a day, this was obviously severe fatigue which made me feel awful and I became too ill to go into work. During these weeks I had a persistent pain in my neck but not a sore throat. Eventually after the New a Year I went to my GP because I just wasn't getting well. They did a throat swab which is the only way you can detect this virus. Within 7 days I was contacted by my GP as a matter of urgency and given the fusobacterium necrophorum diagnosis and I was prescribed oral metronidazole antibiotics for 7 days. I don't think enough is known about this virus at all. In May 2015 this year I have now discovered a very enlarged gland in my neck. I was sent for an ultrasound scan which confirmed this, the lump measuring 2.3 x 1.7 mm. I have no other symptoms that are specific enough to contribute this lump to anything else. I await to be seen by ENT specialist in Nov. Nothing else apart from blood tests has been done. Just hope it's nothing serious. Just thought I'd share my experience. Geri, 36 yr old female, from London UK.

  3. angela SABOURIN angela SABOURIN United States says:

    My son 18 year old son was hospitalized and in the ICU for two nights due to a severe sore throat and infected tonsil.  He started with a sore throat which after 3 days did not go away.  He was not eating or talking due to the pain.  He had a low grade fever and fatigue.  After two  days of severe pain, we visited the doctor who preformed a strep test, which was negative.  He sent us home with a diagnosis of a virus that had to take its course.  That night, he became delirious and fever spike to 108.  We called paramedics who took him to nearest hospital.  They gave him an IV of fluids and repeated tests for strep.  He had some neurological concerns due to the fever, ie. shaking, deliriousness.  His blood pressure was very low and his fever would spike again to 108 so they put him in ICU and started him on 7 antibiotics to cover for different infection, central line, spinal tap to test for meningitis, tick borne illnesses, incephilitis.  I had a weird feeling that the sickness was due to his throat and swollen tonsil.  He had a tonsil that was puss filled and the size of a small plum.  After all tests came back negative, he was feeling better due to the antibiotics.  They released him on the fourth day and he is fine now.  A very terrifying experience for him and his family for sure.  I am certain it was due to the F throat bacteria.

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