This 68 y/o male presented with back pain and a urinary tract infection. MRI of the lumar spine was performed. Selected saggital and axial images shown above demonstrate findings consistent with a lumbar spinal epidural abscess. Surgical drainage & decompression revealed two epidural abscesses. Staph aureus was cultured from the abscesses and the patient's blood and urine.
  1. Reihsaus E, Waldbaur H, Seeling W. Spinal epidural abscess: a meta-analysis of 915 patients. Neurosurg Rev 2000 Dec;23(4):175-204; discussion 205 PMID:11153548
  2. Hadjipavlou AG, Mader JT, Necessary JT, Muffoletto AJ. Hematogenous pyogenic spinal infections and their surgical management. Spine 2000 Jul 1;25(13):1668-79 PMID:10870142
  3. Anand S, Maini L, Agarwal A, Singh T, Dhal AK, Dhaon BK. Spinal epidural abscess - a report of six cases. Int Orthop 1999;23(3):175-7 PMID:10486032
  4. Chow GH, Gebhard JS, Brown CW. Multifocal metachronous epidural abscesses of the spine. A case report. Spine 1996 May 1;21(9):1094-7 PMID:8724097
  5. Darouiche RO, Hamill RJ, Greenberg SB, Weathers SW, Musher DM. Bacterial spinal epidural abscess. Review of 43 cases and literature survey. Medicine (Baltimore) 1992 Nov;71(6):369-85 PMID:1359381
  6. Ferree BA, Stambough JL, Greiner AL. Spinal epidural abscess. A case report and literature review. Orthop Rev 1989 Jan;18(1):75-80 PMID:2644615
  7. Wang JS, Fellows DG, Vakharia S, Rosenbaum AE, Thomas PS. Epidural abscess--early magnetic resonance imaging detection and conservative therapy. Anesth Analg 1996 May;82(5):1069-71 PMID:8610870
  8. Kotilainen E, Sonninen P, Kotilainen P. Spinal epidural abscess: an unusual cause of sciatica. Eur Spine J 1996;5(3):201-3 PMID:8831125
  9. Erntell M, Holtas S, Norlin K, Dahlquist E, Nilsson-Ehle I. Magnetic resonance imaging in the diagnosis of spinal epidural abscess. Scand J Infect Dis 1988;20(3):323-7 PMID:3406672
  10. Akalan N, Ozgen T. Infection as a cause of spinal cord compression: a review of 36 spinal epidural abscess cases. Acta Neurochir (Wien) 2000;142(1):17-23 PMID:10664371
  11. Del Curling O Jr, Gower DJ, McWhorter JM. Changing concepts in spinal epidural abscess: a report of 29 cases. Neurosurgery 1990 Aug;27(2):185-92 PMID:2385334
  12. Bertino RE, Porter BA, Stimac GK, Tepper SJ. Imaging spinal osteomyelitis and epidural abscess with short TI inversion recovery (STIR). AJNR Am J Neuroradiol 1988 May-Jun;9(3):563-4 PMID:3132832
  13. Baltz MS, Tate DE, Glaser JA. Lumbar facet joint infection associated with epidural and paraspinal abscess. Clin Orthop 1997 Jun;(339):109-12 PMID:9186208
  14. Tung GA, Yim JW, Mermel LA, Philip L, Rogg JM. Spinal epidural abscess: correlation between MRI findings and outcome. Neuroradiology 1999 Dec;41(12):904-9 PMID:10639666
  15. Gines R, Bates DJ. Tophaceous lumbar gout mimicking an epidural abscess. Am J Emerg Med 1998 Mar;16(2):216 PMID:9517709

Use the Back or Backward button on your browser to return