Abdominopelvic actinomycosis: a serious complication in intrauterine device users

Actinomycosis is an infrequent chronic suppurative granulomatous disease (1). The human form of actinomycosis is nearly always caused by Actinomyces israelii, a saprophyte Gram-positive anaerobic filamentous bacterium of the oral cavity, pharynx, tracheobronchial tree, digestive tract and vagina. The normal guest situation of actinomyces is altered when it penetrates into deep tissues through a solution of continuity in the mucosa. Colonization of the female genital tract facilitated by the presence of an intrauterine device (IUD) as a prior pathogenic factor triggers a much more insidious clinical presentation (2).