Spinal blastomycosis: unusual musculoskeletal presentation with literature review

Seyed Emamian, Michael G. Fox, Dustin Boatman, Felicia D. Allard, Nicholas C. Nacey

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

2 Scopus citations

Abstract

We report a case of a 41-year-old male who presented to our institution with a large groin mass. CT, MRI and PET imaging was performed and was concerning for a soft tissue abscess likely originating in the lumbar spine. Differential considerations included infection, with atypical infections such as tuberculosis strongly considered. Biopsy revealed fungal elements preliminarily reported as consistent with Cryptococcus neoformans but later revealed to be Blastomyces dermatitidis. The patient responded positively following the introduction of appropriate treatment. This case illustrates the imaging similarities between spinal blastomycosis, spinal tuberculosis, and other fungal infections as well as the need for biopsy to differentiate.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)2021-2027
Number of pages7
JournalSkeletal Radiology
Volume48
Issue number12
DOIs
StatePublished - Dec 1 2019

Keywords

  • Abscess
  • Blastomycosis
  • Fungal
  • Infection
  • MRI
  • Spinal
  • Tuberculosis
  • Vertebrae

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Radiology Nuclear Medicine and imaging

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