Osteomyelitis of the Vertebral Body and the Intervertebral Disk: Diskospondylitis

Diskospondylitis is defined as concurrent intervertebral diskinfection and vertebral osteomyelitis of contiguous vertebrae.(29, 30, 35-38) In the dog, the infection has been attributed to Staphylococcus aureus, Brucella Canis, Nocardia-like organisms, Corynebacterium spp, Paecilo-myces varioti, and grass-seed foreign body penetration with secondary infection.(26,31,3538,40,44-52) Other organisms reported in animals and humans include Streptococcus spp, Pseudomonas spp, Escherichia Coli, Pasteurella spp and various mycotic organisms.(2,7,8,45,67) The similarity of the disease process in humans and animals is interesting, since the comparative value extends into diagnostic, medical, and surgical aspects. Veterinarians need to take advantage of studies and reports in humans that may be beneficial to the animal patient. There are numerous reports in the human literature concerning vertebral osteomyelitis as an entity separate from intervertebral disk infection. (16,18,39,43,47) Diskitis in children is considered a vertebral osteomyelitis with disk involvement,(64) in contrast to intervertebral diskspace inflammation,(58) which may not involve the endplate. Recently, vertebral osteomyelitis in infants has been distinguished from diskitis because of its rare occurrence and seventy.(15) The various manifestations of the disease process recognized in humans occur in animals, but the more subtle and less clinically apparent problems are difficult to diagnose in both.(16,47)