Necrotizing fasciitis of the head and neck: Surgical follow up of 2 cases with the use of LRINEC score

Necrotizing fasciitis of the head and neck is a rare, rapidly progressive infection involving the skin, subcutaneous tissue and fascia. We report two cases that presented at the otolaryngology department at our institute in 2016. Both patients presented with a history of diabetes and according to the LRINEC score they both showed a moderate risk of having the disease. LRINEC is a valuable tool in both diagnosing the case and can be used to follow up the case, as the first case showed a decrease in score during her stay in the hospital, the second case showed an increase in score. We advocate the importance of early detection, eradicating the source of infection followed by frequent, meticulous wound dressing and strict blood sugar control to obtain better outcomes in managing necrotizing fasciitis of the head and neck.