Paraspinal pyomyositis associated with radiculopathy.

[pyomyositis]

A 57 -year -old woman presented with a fever and left-sided hip and back pain . The hip pain was explained by L 3 radiculopathy because the pain was distributed on the L 3 dermatome accompanied by allodynia . On the other hand , the back pain was located on the left side 1 cm from the spinal process of the L 3 -4 vertebrae . Enhanced computed tomography of the abdomen revealed an abscess in the left paravertebral muscle , and pyomyositis was diagnosed . Following percutaneous drainage via ultrasound , both the hip and back pain immediately improved . Paraspinal pyomyositis as well as lesions inside the spinal canal should therefore be considered in the differential diagnosis of patients presenting with fever , back pain , and radiculopathy .