Low back pain in an 87-year-old man that did not turn out to be osteoporosis

An 87-year-old patient with a pacemaker due to sinus disease was hospitalized due to spondylodiscitisby Staphylococcus (bone biopsy). Infection of the electronic device was suspected, and repeated blood cultures were all positive. Echocardiography did not detect vegetations, but PET CT showed positive images on wires. The complete device was then extracted, and lead cultures confirmed the diagnosis, with total recovering of patient. (c) 2023 Published by Elsevier Espana, S.L.U. on behalf of Sociedad Espa nola de Cirugia Cardiovasculary Endovascular. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons. org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).

Automated summary

An 87-year-old patient with spondylodiscitis caused by Staphylococcus infection was diagnosed and treated by removing the pacemaker device after repeated positive blood cultures. Echocardiography did not detect vegetations, but PET CT revealed positive images on the wires. Lead cultures confirmed the diagnosis, leading to complete recovery of the patient.