BACKGROUND Percutaneous pedicle screw instrumentation is a minimally invasive surgical technique; however, the effects of using percutaneous pedicle screw fixation in treating patients with spinal infections have not yet been well demonstrated. The aim of this study, therefore, was to determine whether percutaneous posterior pedicle screw instrumentation is superior to the traditional open appr...

INTRODUCTION Brucellosis is an endemic zoonosis in Portugal. Brucellar spondylodiscitis is one of the most frequent focal manifestations which may cause severe sequelae despite appropriate therapy. MATERIAL AND METHODS Retrospective study of patients with diagnosis of brucellar spondylodiscitis admitted to the Infectious Diseases Department of Centro Hospitalar e Universitário de Coimbra, ove...

STUDY DESIGN Retrospective study. PURPOSE To evaluate the factors affecting immediate postoperative mortality in elderly patients with tuberculous spondylodiscitis. OVERVIEW OF LITERATURE Treatment of spinal tuberculosis in the elderly involves consideration of age and co-morbidities, and often leads to an extended conservative management. Surgical intervention in these patients becomes a c...

Psoas abscess is a rare clinical entity. Rarely, it is associated with thrombosis of the inferior vena cava. This report is of a 36-year-old woman with bilateral pyogenic psoas abscesses with spondylodiscitis complicated by thrombosis of the inferior vena cava. The pathogenesis and imaging features of this condition are discussed.

Actinomyces species may lead to slowly progressive infection of almost any site once mucosal breakdown exists; hence, it has the name "great pretender." Its diagnosis may be unthinkable unless proper cultures/histologies are taken. We describe a patient with lumbar spondylodiscitis and epidural abscess. This is an exceptional another disease by actinomycosis.

Blood samples and a bone biopsy specimen from one patient diagnosed with spondylodiscitis of unknown etiology were analyzed by quantitative real-time PCR to detect Brucella melitensis. The high sensitivity and specificity of this assay allowed the diagnosis of brucellar spondylitis within 24 h, a result that we were unable to obtain through the use of conventional methods.

We report a case of Streptobacillus moniliformis spondylodiscitis accompanied by a psoas abscess in an 80-year-old man scratched by a rooster. S. moniliformis was identified from abscess fluid by use of 16S rRNA gene sequencing. After 18 weeks of antimicrobial therapy, the clinical condition of the patient improved.

Background: Spondylodiscitis is a spinal infection rare affecting primarily the intervertebral disk and adjacent vertebral bodies. His diagnosis difficult often delayed or missed due to rarity of disease. Cervical spondylodiscitis has quite findings regarding common location abscesses in lumbar thoracic regions. To obtain best patient outcomes, these infections require prompt appropriate treatm...

Mycobacterium bovis is responsible for a zoonosis originating in cattle. We report a case of a man with vertebral spondylodiscitis caused by Mycobacterium bovis. Diagnosis was complicated because of the lack of IS6110. These strains are rare, but microbiologists should be aware of their existence.

Background Brucellosis is a systemic infection characterized by significant clinical polymorphism and non-specific manifestations. The spine common location for brucellosis. Objectives aim of this study was to describe the epidemiological, biological characteristics brucellar spondylodiscitis. Methods A retrospective over period 15 years, including 18 patients diagnosed with spondylodiscitis on...