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Purpose To report an intraocular Jarisch-Herxheimer reaction induced by Lemierre syndrome antibiotherapy. Methods Case report. Results A 43-year-old-man presented with an acute onset of bilateral blurred vision few days after intravenous antibiotic administration for Lemierre syndrome. Best-corrected visual acuity was 20/32 in both eyes. Examination revealed bilateral cystoid macular edema and peripheral retinal vasculitis, persisting despite Lemierre syndrome recovery with antibiotics. Intravitreal injection of ranibizumab 0.5 mg (0.05 mL) was performed in both eyes. After 1 month, cystoid macular edema and retinal vasculitis were totally resolved, and best-corrected visual acuity increased to 20/20 in both eyes. The paradoxical worsening of the patient's best-corrected visual acuity after initiating antibiotherapy evokes a Jarisch-Herxheimer reaction. The result of this single intravitreal injection of ranibizumab was sustained; best-corrected visual acuity remained unchanged (20/20 in both eyes), and no recurrence of cystoid macular edema or retinal vasculitis was found after 4-year follow-up. Conclusion To the best of our knowledge, this is the first reported case of an isolated intraocular Jarisch-Herxheimer reaction induced by Lemierre syndrome antibiotherapy and successfully treated with a single intravitreal injection of ranibizumab.

The Jarisch-Herxheimer reaction (JHR) is a transient inflammatory syndrome triggered hours after the start of antibiotic treatment of spirochete infections, namely syphilis. Clinically, JHR manifests as an abrupt onset of constitutional symptoms and exacerbation of cutaneous lesions that resolve without intervention. JHR's pathogenesis is unclear and it is histopathologically rarely reported. Herein, the authors report a 47-year-old woman, with solitary erythema migrans and positive Lyme disease serology, who presented for medical care 14 days after commencement of doxycycline therapy. She complained of malaise, facial flushing, gingival erythema, and acquisition of additional plaques characterized by swelling, increased erythema, pruritus, and exfoliative scale. Punch biopsies demonstrated subacute to chronic spongiotic psoriasiform reaction patterns with a superficial lymphocytic infiltrate. By Borrelia-specific immunohistochemistry, spirochetes were found in the deep dermis, unassociated with inflammation, and focally in the upper spinous layer, associated with spongiosis. Borrelia burgdorferi DNA was detected by nested polymerase chain reaction. Doxycycline was discontinued, and symptoms and signs resolved within a few days. Liberation of endotoxin-like materials (eg, lipoproteins) from degenerating spirochetes and concomitant cytokine production is the suspected cause of JHR and supported by the finding of lesional spirochetes. Alternatively, a reversal reaction with a delayed-type hypersensitivity reaction is also a plausible cause based on spirochetes found in the lymphocytic spongiotic dermatitis.

In this report, we describe a case of Weil disease. Chest x-ray and computed tomography (CT) findings showed temporary deterioration 1 day after the initiation of antibiotic treatment, and high-resolution CT findings with the patient's physical findings made us suspect pulmonary alveolar hemorrhage (PAH). We believed that the PAH had been induced by Weil disease and subsequently caused Jarisch-Herxheimer reaction. We confirmed the patient's contact history with mice, and symptoms improved immediately after starting appropriate treatments. Leptospirosis is a relatively rare cause of PAH. Therefore, the possibility of this disease should be included in the differential diagnosis, especially when high-resolution CT findings indicate PAH, and the imaging findings deteriorate rapidly after antibiotic therapy.

Objective: To estimate the incidence of the Jarisch-Herxheimer reaction in pregnant women undergoing treatment of syphilis and the incidence of changes in uterine activity or fetal heart rate (FHR). Methods: Pregnant women of at least 24 weeks’ gestation diagnosed as needing treatment of syphilis were reviewed retrospectively. Patients were admitted for their first dose of benzathine penicillin, and the FHR was recorded continuously before and for 24 hours after injection. The occurrence of the Jarisch-Herxheimer reaction was noted, and all available FHR records for this admission were reviewed. Evaluations for changes in the FHR pattern and uterine activity were made. Statistical comparisons used Student t, Fischer exact, and χ2 tests, when applicable (significance P < .05). Results: We reviewed 50 charts and 31 available FHR records. The average gestational age was 30.8 weeks. We found 20 cases of probable Jarisch-Herxheimer reaction (40%). Thirteen of 31 patients (41.9%) developed regular uterine contractions, median onset, 10 hours. All resolved within 24 hours of treatment. Patients with uterine contractions had a greater mean increase in temperature (1.15F versus 0.68F, P < .008). Twelve of 31 women (38.7%) developed recurrent variable decelerations, median onset, 8 hours. All patients but one had their contractions resolve within 24 hours of treatment. Lower gestational age was associated with the occurrence of recurrent variable decelerations (29.6 weeks versus 32.3 weeks, P < .05). No patients required delivery at the time of treatment. Conclusion: The incidence of Jarisch-Herxheimer reaction in treated syphilitic pregnancies is about 40%; similar proportions of patients develop regular uterine contractions and recurrent variable decelerations.

A 14-year-old girl was seen at a community clinic with a chief complaint of abdominal pain and fevers and was treated with oral ciprofloxacin for presumed pyelonephritis. She became tachycardic and hypotensive after her first dose of antibiotic, and she developed disseminated intravascular coagulation. She was admitted to our hospital for presumed sepsis. Her outpatient peripheral blood smear was reviewed, revealing spirochetes consistent with Borrelia sp. To our knowledge this is the first reported case of the Jarisch-Herxheimer reaction to ciprofloxacin.

We report a case of severe leptospirosis acquired in an urban setting at a Halal poultry farm. After the initiation of antibiotic treatment, the patient developed a Jarisch-Herxheimer reaction and subsequent acute respiratory distress syndrome. He improved dramatically after receiving contin

A 58-year-old woman developed neurologic and neuroophthalmologic manifestations of Lyme disease, includ­ ing a radiculomyelit is, cranial neuritis and mild right optic neuropathy. Upon treatment with intravenous cef­ triaxone a Jarisch-Herxheimer reaction occurred with en­ cephalopathy, mild fever, worsening radiculomyelitis, and deterioration of her visual acuity. Intravenous methylprednisolone was given, and the visual acuity recovered over 72 hours. This case suggests that transient worsen­ ing of optic neuropathy can develop as a sequela of the Jarisch-Herxheimer reaction in the treatment of Lyme disease. The Jarisch-Herxheimer reaction (JHR) is a rec­ ognized complication of the treatment of spiro­ chetal infections. It is characterized by fever, chills, myalgia, arthralgia, exacerbation of existing le­ sions, and hypotension. The symptoms usually are greatest 6 to 12 hours after initiating treatment and resolve within 72 hours (1-5). In Lyme dis­ ease, caused by the spirochete Borrelia burgdorferi, approximately 14% of patients have a worsening of symptoms during the first 24 hours of treatment. These exacerbations are considered to be caused by JHR (6). We report a case of transient deterio­ ration of optic nerve function in a patient with prior optic neuropathy presumably as a sequela of JHR in the treatment of Lyme disease.