JBJI Journal of Bone and Joint Infection JBJI J. Bone Joint Infect. 2206-3552 Ivyspring Göttingen, Germany 10.7150/jbji.37266 Brodie's Abscesses Can Stimulate the Growth Plate in Children Pulido Patricia Garcia 1 Hotchen Andrew 1 Gojanur Ashwin 1 Corbett James 1 Stohr Kuldeep K 1 Cambridge University Hospital, United Kingdom 06 11 2019 4 6 264 267 Copyright: © 2019 Patricia Garcia Pulido et al. 2019 This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. To view a copy of this licence, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ This article is available from https://jbji.copernicus.org/articles/4/264/2019/jbji-4-264-2019.html The full text article is available as a PDF file from https://jbji.copernicus.org/articles/4/264/2019/jbji-4-264-2019.pdf

<p class="p p-first" id="__p2"><strong>Introduction:</strong> We present a series of children with lower limb Brodie's abscesses (subacute osteomyelitis) with subsequent deformities.</p><p id="__p3"><strong>Method:</strong> A retrospective examination of the paediatric bone and joint infection database from 2014-2017 was performed. All children have MRI scans and blood tests including full blood count, ESR and CRP. MRI identified collections were drained surgically.</p><p id="__p4"><strong>Results:</strong> There were 68 children with bone and joint infections, and 6 had a Brodie's abscess. 4 Brodie's abscesses were adjacent to a growth plate, all these had resultant growth deformities. Some deformities develop up to 3 years after initial presentation.</p><p class="p p-last" id="__p5"><strong>Discussion:</strong> We recommend long-term vigilance for growth deformity after a Brodie's abscess. In particular we demonstrate that infection can result in stimulation of the physis, as opposed to growth retardation as generally accepted.</p>

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