A Case of Odontoid Osteomyelitis.

Odontoid osteomyelitis is a rare infectious disease that manifests as fever and posterior neck pain, while crowned dens syndrome is a relatively common inflammatory disorder with similar signs and symptoms. We describe the case of a 90-year-old woman presenting with fever, posterior neck pain, throat pain, and headache. Crowned dens syndrome was initially diagnosed based on the clinical picture and calcification around the odontoid process on cervical spine CT. However, the diagnosis was revised to odontoid osteomyelitis following the detection of Staphylococcus aureus in blood cultures that were performed due to the presence of headache. Infectious complications included spinal epidural abscess extending to the hypoglossal canal and osteomyelitis spreading to the clivus. Nonetheless, the patient achieved complete recovery after 13 weeks of antimicrobial therapy. No reports of odontoid osteomyelitis with calcification around the odontoid process have been reported. This case underscores the importance of avoiding a hasty diagnosis of crowned dens syndrome when calcification around the odontoid process is observed in patients presenting with fever and posterior neck pain. It is crucial to perform a thorough medical history review and physical examination to exclude other conditions. In cases where infection is suspected, blood cultures and cervical spine MRI are essential to investigate odontoid osteomyelitis and other complications.

Crowned dens syndrome: A case series of 72 patients at eight teaching hospitals in Japan.

Background: Crowned dens syndrome (CDS) is characterized by calcification around the odontoid process, accompanied by neck pain. Although CDS is supposedly rare, we regularly diagnose and manage this condition, indicating a perception gap between previous studies and our experience. The purpose of this study was to determine the annual incidence of CDS, time to diagnosis in CDS, as well as the features of CDS. Methods: The study design was a retrospective case series study conducted at eight teaching hospitals in Japan. We identified CDS cases from April 2013-March 2015. CDS was diagnosed when patients had acute onset of neck pain and CT showed calcification around the dens and when other diagnoses were unlikely. Results: Seventy-two CDS cases were identified. Mean annual incidence was 4.6 ± 2.3 cases at each hospital. Among those with available data, 57 of 64 had limited rotation (89.1%). The diagnosis of CDS was made in general internal medicine or the emergency medicine department in 61 cases (84.7%). A total of 62 cases (86.1%) were diagnosed within 1 day of presentation, and the median time from initial presentation at the hospital to diagnosis was 0.0 days (25th-75th percentiles, 0.0-1.0). For treatment, NSAIDs were used in 56cases (77.8%) and acetaminophen in 20 cases (27.8%). Conclusion: CDS might be more common than has been reported to date. Time to diagnosis of CDS was within 1 day of visiting a teaching hospital. Cervical motion restriction is common in CDS and may be useful in establishing the diagnosis.

Thiamine Concentrations in Newly Hospitalized Elderly Patients with Infectious Diseases at a Community Hospital in Japan.

The association between advanced age and the thiamine concentration has not been conclusively determined. A recent report from Japan showed that more than half of nursing home elderly residents at an institution had a low whole-blood thiamine concentration (<20 ng/mL). Therefore, a high incidence of low thiamine concentrations among hospitalized elderly has been anticipated in the Japanese population but never investigated. We evaluated the whole thiamine concentration in newly hospitalized elderly patients (≥65 y old) with infectious diseases. Evaluations were performed on admission and at days 6-8 of hospitalization with liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (LC/MS/MS). As a result, we enrolled a total of 471 patients from September 2015 to December 2016. The median thiamine concentration was 46 ng/mL (IQR, 37-58 ng/mL). Only 7 patients (1%) had thiamine concentrations below 20 ng/mL (66 nmol/L) on admission. Five of these patients were bedridden and unable to eat food by themselves, and the other two patients used loop diuretics for chronic heart failure. The thiamine concentration declined in most patients (84%) at days 6-8 of admission, regardless of their dietary intake during hospitalization. In conclusion, a low thiamine concentration was not prevalent among newly hospitalized elderly patients with infectious diseases. However, the thiamine concentration significantly decreased during the 6-8 d of hospitalization.

Spontaneous meningitis due to Streptococcus salivarius subsp. salivarius: cross-reaction in an assay with a rapid diagnostic kit that detected Streptococcus pneumoniae antigens.

Streptococcus salivarius subsp. salivarius occasionally causes meningitis associated with iatrogenic or traumatic events. We herein describe a case of meningitis caused by this organism in a patient without any apparent risk factors. In an assay of the patient's cerebrospinal fluid, cross-reaction occurred with Streptococcus pneumoniae antigen-coated latex particles in the Pastorex Meningitis Kit. In the in vitro assays, three of the five clinically isolated S. salivarius strains showed cross-reactions with the kit, indicating that these strains expressed pneumococcal antigen-like antigens. This case shows that meningitis caused by S. salivarius can occur spontaneously and it may sometimes be misdiagnosed as S. pneumoniae infection.