Abstract
Brodie’s abscess is a form of sub-acute pyogenic osteomyelitis. Most of them occur in the metaphysis and respond well to surgical curettage. We report the case of a 15-year-old boy with bilateral asymmetrical Brodie’s abscess of the distal tibia. On the left side, the abscess was purely metaphyseal, and on the right, it extended across the growth plate. We found that plain radiographs were unable to delineate the true anatomical extend of the lesion. MRI scans were done to aid in the pre-operative planning. We suggest that MRI is essential for the pre-operative planning of these rare lesions, as some of them can cross over to the epiphysis. We discuss the differential diagnosis and also present a review of the literature on Brodie’s abscess.
Résumé
L’abcès de Brodie est une forme d’ostéomyélite pyogénique subaiguë. La plupart d’entre eux se développent dans la métaphyse et répondent bien au curetage chirurgical. Nous rapportons le cas d’un garçon 15 ans avec un abcès de Brodie asymétrique bilatéral du tibia distal. Du côté droit l’abcès était purement métaphysaire et du côté gauche il se prolongeait à travers le cartilage de croissance. Nous avons constaté que les radiographies standard ne pouvaient pas montrer la véritable extension anatomique de la lésion. Des balayages IRM ont été faits pour faciliter la planification pré opératoire. Nous proposons que l’examen IRM soit essentiel pour la planification pré-opératoire de ces lésions rares, d’autant que certaines peuvent croiser l’épiphyse. Nous discutons le diagnostic différentiel et présentons une revue de la littérature de l’abcès de Brodie.
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The authors declare that this study complies with the current laws in the United Kingdom.
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Kurup, H.V., Uglow, M. Bilateral asymmetrical Brodie’s abscess. Eur J Orthop Surg Traumatol 15, 145–147 (2005). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00590-004-0217-3
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00590-004-0217-3