This site is intended for healthcare professionals

Go to /sign-in page

You can view 5 more pages before signing in

Treatment

Last reviewed dd mmm yyyy. Last edited dd mmm yyyy

Authoring team

In the acute situation, surgical drainage of a spinal abscess is required to maintain neurological function. If there is vertebral body collapse, anterior decompression is needed and this is supplemented by a bone graft to aid stabilization.

Alternatively, the abscess is drained by laminectomy, or in the very frail patient, a needle guided by CT scan.

Antibiotics complement drainage, the drug being changed according to sensitivity results after culture, e.g. flucloxacillin and fusidic acid for Staph. spp. Therapy is continued for at least six weeks, or six to twelve weeks in the case of spinal tuberculosis.


Create an account to add page annotations

Add information to this page that would be handy to have on hand during a consultation, such as a web address or phone number. This information will always be displayed when you visit this page

The content herein is provided for informational purposes and does not replace the need to apply professional clinical judgement when diagnosing or treating any medical condition. A licensed medical practitioner should be consulted for diagnosis and treatment of any and all medical conditions.

Connect

Copyright 2024 Oxbridge Solutions Limited, a subsidiary of OmniaMed Communications Limited. All rights reserved. Any distribution or duplication of the information contained herein is strictly prohibited. Oxbridge Solutions receives funding from advertising but maintains editorial independence.