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Differential Diagnosis of Spinal Infections

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Tuberculosis of the Spine

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Abstract

Spinal infections encompass a wide group of clinical conditions affecting all age groups with a variety of causative pathogens. These include pyogenic (bacterial), granulomatous infections (prototype being tuberculosis) and parasitic. The clinical presentation of spinal infections may range from subtle symptoms mimicking mechanical back pain to the florid with abscess formation and neurological deficits. The plethora of pathogens, the wide age group affected, and a constellation of symptoms make diagnosis of spinal infection difficult, resulting in delay in treatment often with deleterious consequences. Furthermore, the radiological features of spinal infections maybe similar to other non-infectious clinical entities. Degenerative disease of spine, metastatic disease, osteoporotic fractures, myeloma, and Charcot joints of the spine form the differential diagnosis of spinal infections. Multiple diagnostic tools maybe needed to establish accurate diagnosis. Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) is the imaging modality of choice in diagnosing spinal infections.

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Acknowledgments

The authors would wish to express their sincerest thanks to Dr. Jaspreet Singh, Consultant Radiologist at the Robert Jones and Agnes Hunt Orthopaedic Hospital, Oswestry, for his kind contribution of the imaging utilized in this chapter.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Robert Jones and Agnes Hunt Orthopaedic Hospital, Oswestry, UK

    Jayesh Trivedi

  2. Alder Hey Children’s Hospital, East Prescot Road, Liverpool, UK

    Jayesh Trivedi

  3. East Sussex healthcare NHS trust, Eastbourne, UK

    Rishi Trivedi

Authors
  1. Jayesh Trivedi
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  2. Rishi Trivedi
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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Orthopaedics, Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research, Chandigarh, Punjab, India

    Sarvdeep Singh Dhatt

  2. Department of Orthopaedics, Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research, Chandigarh, Punjab, India

    Vishal Kumar

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© 2022 The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd.

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Trivedi, J., Trivedi, R. (2022). Differential Diagnosis of Spinal Infections. In: Dhatt, S.S., Kumar, V. (eds) Tuberculosis of the Spine. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-16-9495-0_11

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-16-9495-0_11

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Singapore

  • Print ISBN: 978-981-16-9494-3

  • Online ISBN: 978-981-16-9495-0

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