Bacterial meningitis associated with a complex ischiorectal abscess.

We describe a case of bacterial meningitis in a 37 year old man resulting from the direct extension of an spontaneously occurring ischiorectal abscess into the intradural space. The patient presented with back pain and urinary retention and this was followed by the development of headache, photophobia and a left VIth nerve palsy. The patient was not diabetic or immunocompromised. He was treated with broad spectrum antibiotics and with drainage of the ischiorectal abscess; no organism was grown from blood, abscess contents or cerebrospinal fluid. He went on to make a full recovery.