A female patient named CTL (49 years old, from Soc Trang province), was admitted to Can Tho University Hospital with lumbar spine pain, numbness and weakness in both legs. When moving, she had convulsions. The patient had to lie in one place and rely on relatives to help with personal activities.
Lumbar spine MRI results (with contrast injection) showed that the patient had L3L4 lumbar vertebrae fusion, L3L4 disc spondylitis, anterior spinal cord abscess, and severe nerve compression due to spinal tuberculosis; Chest X-ray showed diffuse bronchial wall thickening and fibrosis on both sides of the lungs, and right thoracic scoliosis.
Associate Professor, Doctor, Doctor Dam Van Cuong consulted with specialists and concluded that this was a case of chronic osteomyelitis due to tuberculosis. The patient was treated with anti-tuberculosis drugs for 2 weeks, then continued with surgery to stiffen the spine, cut the vertebral body minimally, decompress the spinal cord, nerve roots and fuse the L3L4 interbody bone with a titanium cage.
After nearly 5 hours, the surgery was successful. The patient is now awake, no longer has back pain, and can move around.
Specialist Doctor Ly Tan Phat - Deputy Head of General Surgery Department, Nam Can Tho University Hospital - said that this is a difficult surgery because tuberculous spondylitis (also known as spinal tuberculosis) is an infection caused by tuberculosis bacteria. Tuberculosis bacteria from the lungs or other organs can spread through the blood to the spine, causing serious damage to the skeletal system.
According to recommendations from experts, to prevent this disease, people need to get vaccinated (BCG) to prevent tuberculosis from a young age; strengthen the immune system with a reasonable diet and regular exercise; thoroughly treat tuberculosis cases in other organs to avoid spreading to the spine; and have regular health check-ups to detect early signs of abnormalities.
