Related Experiment Video
Updated: Mar 19, 2026

In Vivo Mouse Model of Spinal Implant Infection
Published on: June 23, 2020
Low back pain after a dental procedure: a case of Streptococcus viridans vertebral osteomyelitis
Salik Nazir1, Saroj Lohani1, Niranjan Tachamo1
1Reading Hospital and Medical Center, Reading, Pennsylvania, USA.
Abstract:
Vertebral osteomyelitis due to Streptococcus viridans following a dental procedure is a rarely reported phenomenon. We discuss the case of a 67-year-old immunocompetent woman who presented with low back pain of 3 weeks duration associated with subjective fever and chills. On admission, the MRI of the lumbar spine showed L5-S1 vertebral osteomyelitis with associated paravertebral and epidural abscesses. Subsequently, detailed history was retaken and the patient reported having had a maxillary tooth extraction followed by a dental implant 2 months prior to the onset of her symptoms. Blood and abscess fluid cultures grew S. viridans Transthoracic echocardiogram showed no evidence of endocarditis. The patient was started on intravenous ceftriaxone but her treatment course was complicated by agranulocytosis requiring a switch to vancomycin. She required a total of 9 weeks of intravenous antibiotics for complete clinical cure.
Related Concept Videos
Endocarditis IV: Nursing Management
Endocarditis I: Introduction
Endocarditis III: Medical Management
Endocarditis II: Clinical Features of Infective Endocarditis
Tonsillitis II: Management
Urinary Tract Calculi VI: Surgical Management

