Rhinoschleroma

A 39 year-old man came to our institution because of a five-year history of a progressive painful growing mass on his left nostril, which cause airway obstruction with ulceration. Because of a suspicion of malignancy, surgery (mass resection and subtotal nasal reconstruction) was performed. Histologic samples ruled out malignancy, and tissue cultures for fungus and mycobacteria were negative, but regular aerobic cultures were positive for Klebsiella rhinoscleromatis. The patient was given a six-month regimen of ciprofloxacin, and a dramatic improvement was observed.