Table 2.

Clinical and laboratory characteristics of patients with tuberculous spondylitis and culture negative pyogenic spondylitis

	CNPS (N = 71)	TS (N = 94)	P-value
Duration of symptoms
<1 month	32 (45.1 %)	25 (26.6 %)	0.002
1–3 months	32 (45.1 %)	44 (46.8 %)
> 4 months	7 (9.9 %)	25 (26.6 %)
Neurologic stage
No pain	0	3 (3.2 %)	0.164
Spine pain	28 (39.4 %)	52 (55.3 %)
Radiating pain	38 (53.5 %)	26 (26.6 %)
Weakness	5 (7.0 %)	13 (13.8 %)
Sepsis	7 (9.9 %)	15 (16.0 %)	0.254
Initial body temperature over 38 °C	11 (15.5 %)	27 (31.8 %)	0.018
WBC (/mm3) (median with IQR)	8600 (7070–11,100)	7890 (6098–10,293)	0.030
CRP a (mg/dL) (median with IQR)	4.3 (2.4–8.1)	2.8 (1.0–7.2)	0.018
IGRA b
Positive	8 (27.6 %)	38 (79.2 %)	<0.001
Negative	19 (65.5 %)	9 (18.8 %)
Psoas abscess	11 (15.5 %)	31 (33.0 %)	0.011
Paravertebral abscess	35 (49.3 %)	70 (74.5 %)	0.001
Epidural abscess	39 (54.9 %)	50 (53.2 %)	0.824
Involved vertebrae
Cervical	2 (2.8 %)	3 (3.2 %)	N.A.
Cervicothoracic	0	6 (6.4 %)
Thoracic	5 (7.0 %)	25 (26.6 %)
Thoracolumbar	3 (4.2 %)	9 (9.6 %)
Lumbar	47 (66.2 %)	43 (45.7 %)
Lumbosacral	14 (19.7 %)	6 (6.4 %)
Sacral	0	1 (1.1 %)
Cervical and Lumbar (skipped lesion)	0	1 (1.1 %)
Number of vertebrae involved
1–2	58 (81.7 %)	65 (69.1 %)	0.067
3–5	13 (18.3 %)	29 (30.9 %)

Abbreviations: WBC white blood cell count, IQR interquartile range, CRP C-reactive protein, IGRA Interferon gamma release assay, TS tuberculous spondylitis, CNPS culture negative pyogenic spondylitis, N.A not applicable

^aC-Reactive Protein value was missing in 1 case of tuberculous spondylitis

^bThe IGRA was performed in 76 patients: 48 with TS and 29 with CNPS. IGRA result was indeterminate in one case of tuberculous spondylitis and two cases of culture negative pyogenic spondylitis