Ludwig's angina following frenuloplasty in an adolescent.

Ludwig's angina is a rapidly progressive cellulitis of the submandibular space and has the potential for significant upper airway obstruction. Most reported cases follow an odontogenic infection. We present the case of a 13-year-old girl who underwent a frenuloplasty to correct speech disturbances and subsequently developed a life-threatening infection of the floor of mouth. Immediate intubation, surgical decompression and antibiotic therapy successfully resolved the episode. To our knowledge, this is the first report of an iatrogenic Ludwig's angina attributable to a frenuloplasty performed for ankyloglossia. We briefly review the literature on ankyloglossia, pediatric Ludwig's angina and postoperative infections.