TABLE 1.
Characteristic | All patients (N = 180) | Spinal or paraspinal infections with meningitis (n = 39) | Spinal or paraspinal infections without meningitis (n = 141) | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
|
|
||||
No. | (%) | No. | (%) | No. | (%) | |
Sex | ||||||
Male | 75 | (42) | 14 | (36) | 61 | (43) |
Female | 105 | (58) | 25 | (64) | 80 | (57) |
Signs and symptoms of spinal or paraspinal infection | (n = 178) | (n = 39) | (n = 139) | |||
Fever/chills | 13 | (7) | 6 | (15) | 7 | (5) |
Headache | 77 | (43) | 28 | (72) | 49 | (35) |
Slurred speech | 2 | (1) | 0 | — | 2 | (1) |
Confusion | 8 | (4) | 4 | (10) | 4 | (3) |
Light sensitivity | 21 | (12) | 12 | (31) | 9 | (6) |
Nausea/vomiting | 39 | (22) | 18 | (46) | 21 | (15) |
Neck pain/stiff neck | 42 | (24) | 13 | (33) | 29 | (21) |
Back pain | 116 | (65) | 18 | (46) | 98 | (71) |
Leg pain | 12 | (7) | 0 | — | 12 | (9) |
Urinary retention | 4 | (2) | 0 | — | 4 | (3) |
Urinary incontinence | 2 | (1) | 0 | — | 2 | (1) |
Ataxia | 1 | (1) | 0 | — | 1 | (1) |
Visual disturbance | 6 | (3) | 3 | (8) | 3 | (2) |
Numbness | 10 | (6) | 2 | (5) | 8 | (6) |
Meningeal signs* | 7 | (4) | 6 | (15) | 1 | (1) |
Laboratory confirmation of fungal infection† | 57 | (32) | 20 | (51) | 37 | (26) |
Including nuchal rigidity, Kernig sign, and Brudzinski sign.
Confirmation by culture, polymerase chain reaction, or histopathology.