Citrobacter koseri: A rare cause of an epidural spinal abscess.

Background: Citrobacter koseri, a Gram-negative organism, rarely causes an epidural spinal abscess. Case Description: A 50-year-old male presented with mild paraparesis attributed to an magnetic resonance (MR)-documented spinal epidural abscess (SEA) at the T10-level. Following surgical debridement, cultures grew C. koseri, a rare Gram-negative organism. The abscess was subsequently managed with a prolonged course of antibiotics resulting in complete symptom and MR-documented radiological resolution. Conclusion: A 50-year-old male presented with a T10 SEA attributed to a rare Gram-negative organism, C. koseri. The abscess was appropriately managed with surgical decompression/debridement, followed by prolonged antibiotic therapy.

Spinal canal invasion as a predictor of neurological deficit in traumatic vertebral burst fractures.

Background: This study correlated the extent of spinal canal compression from retropulsed traumatic burst cervical, thoracic, and lumbar spine fractures with the severity of neurological dysfunction. Methods: One hundred and sixty-nine patients with cervical, thoracic, or lumbar sub-axial traumatic burst fractures were seen in an emergency department from 2019 to 2021; 79.3% were men, averaging 37 years of age. The lumbar spine was most frequently involved (42%), followed by the thoracic (36.1%) and cervical (21.9%) levels. The extent of spinal canal compression was quantitated utilizing Hashimoto's method, and correlated with patients' extent of neurological injury based on their American Spinal Injury Association scores. Results: There was a positive correlation between the extent of cervical and thoracic spinal cord compression due to retro pulsed burst fragments and the severity of the patients' neurological deficits, but this was not true for the lumbar spine. Conclusion: The extent of spinal cord compression from retropulsed cervical and thoracic traumatic burst fractures was readily correlated with the severity of patients' neurological dysfunction. However, there was no such correlation between the extent of cauda equina compression from retropulsed lumbar burst fractures and the severity of their cauda equina syndromes.