Solitary cystic tuberculosis of long tubular bones in children

Abstract

Five children (mean age 3.4 years) with solitary cystic tuberculosis of proximal femur or proximal tibia were treated by surgical debridement and curettage combined with anti-tuberculosis anti-biotherapy. The mean follow-up period was 4.3 years and clinical and radiological healing was observed in all cases. It was concluded that solitary cystic tuberculosis of long tubular bones, which was a rare manifestation in children, should be kept in mind especially for metaphyseal lesions in the lower limbs and should be differentiated from several osseous lesions including infections and bone tumours.