@article{3103144,
    title = "Echinococcosis of the spine",
    author = "Sioutis, S. and Reppas, L. and Bekos, A. and Soulioti, E. and Saranteas, T. and Koulalis, D. and Sapkas, G. and Mavrogenis, A.F.",
    journal = "EFORT Open Reviews",
    year = "2021",
    volume = "64",
    number = "4",
    pages = "288-296",
    publisher = "British Editorial Society of Bone and Joint Surgery",
    issn = "2396-7544, 2058-5241",
    doi = "10.1302/2058-5241.6.200130",
    keywords = "antiparasitic agent;  sodium chloride, Article;  bladder dysfunction;  bone biopsy;  clinical feature;  computer assisted tomography;  disease classification;  disease transmission;  echinococcosis;  Echinococcus granulosus;  echography;  fever;  human;  laboratory test;  lavage;  leg pain;  life cycle;  limb weakness;  low back pain;  morbidity;  mortality;  muscle weakness;  nuclear magnetic resonance imaging;  paraplegia;  pathologic fracture;  quadriplegia;  radiculopathy;  recurrent disease;  spastic paraplegia;  spinal cord compression;  spinal cord disease;  spine echinococcosis;  spine surgery;  urge incontinence;  vomiting;  walking difficulty",
    abstract = "Echinococcosis or hydatid disease affecting the spine is an uncommon manifestation of Echinococcus granulosus infection of the spine. More commonly found in endemic areas, it causes significant morbidity and mortality as it grows slowly and produces symptoms mainly by compressing the spinal cord. As diagnostic methods are non-specific, diagnosis and management are usually delayed until the disease is advanced, thereby therapy is usually unlikely. Treatment is usually surgical, aiming at cyst excision, spinal cord decompression and spinal stabilization. This article summarizes the clinical findings of echinococ-cosis of the spine, discusses the specific laboratory and diagnostic findings, lists the current treatment options, and reviews the patients’ outcomes. The aim is to prompt clinicians to be aware of the possibility of echinococcosis as a possible diagnosis in endemic areas. © 2021. The author(s) This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0) licence (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/) which permits non-commercial use, reproduction and distribution of the work without further permission provided the original work is attributed."
}