Open AccessLow Back Pain: Would it be Psoas Abscess?
Author(s) -
Siu AYC,
Law KL,
Lo CB,
Chung CH
Publication year - 2002
Publication title -
hong kong journal of emergency medicine
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.145
H-Index - 12
eISSN - 2309-5407
pISSN - 1024-9079
DOI - 10.1177/102490790200900406
Subject(s) - medicine , abscess , presentation (obstetrics) , differential diagnosis , back pain , low back pain , hip pain , surgery , emergency department , gastrointestinal tract , radiology , pathology , alternative medicine , psychiatry
Psoas abscess is an uncommon clinical entity. It can be a primary infection with no obvious source of infection or a secondary infection from other sites, e.g. gastrointestinal tract or spinal pathology. The triads of presentation: fever, loin pain and limitation of hip movement may not be found in all patients. The correct diagnosis can be made with a vigilant clinical examination and appropriate investigation, for example ultrasonography. We present two cases of psoas abscess. One was a primary case and the other was secondary to carcinoma of caecum. Both of them presented with recent onset of back pain. Emergency physicians consider psoas abscess as one of the differential diagnosis for patient complaining of low back pain.