Vertebral osteomyelitis mimicking chronic pancreatitis

Summary Vertebral osteomyelitis rarely mimics pancreatitis. However, the potential consequences of longstanding unrecognized disease, including neurological impairment and bony deformity, should make it an item in the differential diagnosis of chronic pancreatitis. In the evaluation of our patient, four items were of particular importance: awareness of his previously documentedS. aureus bacteremia, a markedly elevated ESR, an abnormal chest radiograph, and the positive bone scan.Presented under the title Vertebral Osteomyelitis Mimicking Chronic Pancreatitis: Case Report and Literature Review at the annual meeting of the American College of Gastroenterology, October 16–18, 1995, New York, New York.