Unveiling a foreign body masquerading as periarticular calcification: a case report

Area of Science:

• Orthopedic Surgery
• Radiology
• Diagnostic Medicine

Background:

• Extremity discomfort evaluation is challenging with limited initial imaging.
• Subtle patient history often indicates occult pathologies, but symptoms are miscategorized as idiopathic.

Observation:

• A case of retained glass presented as acute calcific periarthritis on imaging.
• A 48-year-old male with vague joint pain had periarticular calcification on radiographs.
• Surgical exploration revealed an encapsulated glass fragment eroding bone.

Findings:

• Advanced imaging can lack specificity in differentiating inflammatory arthropathies from foreign body intra-articular processes.
• Obscure patient history questions are crucial for uncovering causal subtleties in diagnosis.
• A decade-old forgotten glass laceration was the underlying cause of symptoms.

Implications:

• This case highlights imaging limitations and the vital role of meticulous history-taking for ambiguous chronic limb presentations.
• Probing distant trauma is imperative when symptoms appear disconnected from causative events.
• Comprehensive evaluation of subtle patient clues is key to diagnosing elusive extremity pain.