Last update:
   15-Jul-2011
 

Arch Hellen Med, 28(4), July-August 2011, 475-478

REVIEW

Osteomyelitis in children with acute lymphoblastic leukemia

C. Dokos, K. Dokou, A. Ī¤ragiannidis
Second Department of Pediatrics, Hematology-Oncology Unit, "AHEPA" General Hospital, Medical School,
Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Thessaloniki, Greece

The orchestrated procedures of hematopoiesis are characterized by the dynamic capability of the hematopoietic stem cells in all the phases of the cell cycle. Upregulation of the hematopoiesis procedures leads to high malignancy disorders, such as acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL). Primary diagnosis of ALL may be quite difficult, especially when the symptoms mimic those of osteomyelitis, and non-traumatic bone pain poses a differential diagnostic challenge. This review covers not only the differential diagnosis of childhood bone pain that is mimicked by ALL, but also the appearance of osteomyelitis in children with ALL under chemotherapy.

Key words: Acute lymphoblastic leukemia, Bacteria, Bone pain, Fungi, Hematopoiesis, Osteomyelitis.

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