Acute pyogenic psoas abscess in children

In a retrospective study, 24 patients treated at King Edward VIII Hospital from 1985 to 1988 for acute pyogenic psoas abscess were reviewed. The main initial complaints were a painful hip and difficulty in walking. Twenty-two patients had a fixed flexion deformity of the ipsilateral hip. Ultrasonography used as a screening method elucidated the clinical diagnosis in 19 patients. Twenty-two children required incision and drainage, and Staphylococcus aureus was isolated in 20 patients either on blood culture or pus swab. Although the condition is common in the tropics, an acute pyogenic psoas abscess should always be considered in the differential diagnosis of pain in the hip region.