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Non-tuberculous Infections of the Spine

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Pediatric Musculoskeletal Infections

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Abstract

Pediatric spinal infections occur uncommonly and can be a result of many causes including bacteria, fungi, parasites, and viruses occurring in various locations of the spinal tract such as the spinal cord, meninges, nerve roots, intervertebral discs, vertebra, and epidural space. Unfortunately, diagnosis can be challenging due to presentation with non-specific symptoms and some pediatric patients’ inability to verbalize symptoms. Subsequently, misdiagnosis, treatment delays, and further infection progression are common. Moreover, the infrequency of pediatric spinal infection occurrences poses additional problems in the treatment of more common disorders such as spondylodiscitis and spinal abscesses as treatment guidelines have not yet been standardized, specifically in pediatric populations. Proper identification of present clinical symptoms, utilization of diagnostic tests, and visualization of radiography will be essential in treating children with spinal infections in addition to recommended treatment guidelines. This chapter will provide you with the necessary tools to recognize and treat pediatric spinal infections of various etiologies, focusing on the most common infections: spondylodiscitis and spinal abscesses.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Drexel University College of Medicine in Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA, USA

    Kelly Gillock

  2. St. Christopher’s Hospital for Children, Department of Radiology, Philadelphia, PA, USA

    Archana Malik

  3. Drexel University College of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA, USA

    Martin J. Herman

  4. Orthopedic Surgery, St. Christopher’s Hospital for Children, Philadelphia, PA, USA

    Martin J. Herman

Authors
  1. Kelly Gillock
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  2. Archana Malik
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  3. Martin J. Herman
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Kelly Gillock .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Child Health & Orthopedics, University of Arizona College of Medicine, Phoenix, AZ, USA

    Mohan V. Belthur

  2. Blooming Buds Centre for Pediatric Orthopedics, Deenanath Mangeshkar Hospital, Pune, Maharashtra, India

    Ashish S. Ranade

  3. Drexel University College of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA, USA

    Martin J. Herman

  4. Orthopedics, Sheffield Children’s NHS Foundation Trust, Sheffield, UK

    James A. Fernandes

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Gillock, K., Malik, A., Herman, M.J. (2022). Non-tuberculous Infections of the Spine. In: Belthur, M.V., Ranade, A.S., Herman, M.J., Fernandes, J.A. (eds) Pediatric Musculoskeletal Infections. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-95794-0_33

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-95794-0_33

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-030-95793-3

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-030-95794-0

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