Differences analysis between spinal tuberculosis and brucella spondylitis with preoperative non-invasive differential diagnosis

Objective: Spinal tuberculosis (STB) and Brucella spondylitis (BS) represent two types of granulomatous infections affecting the spine, which exhibit significant similarities that often result in misdiagnosis and overlooked diagnoses during preoperative evaluations. This study aims to identify non-invasive evaluative indicators that facilitate the differentiation between STB and BS.

Methods: This study conducted a retrospective collection of clinical features, laboratory tests, and imaging characteristics from 89 patients diagnosed with STB and 66 patients diagnosed with BS. Differences were assessed utilizing χ² tests, independent non-parametric tests, Mann-Whitney U tests, or Fisher's exact tests. Binary logistic regression analysis was employed to identify independent predictive factors for differential diagnosis, and receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were generated to assess the effectiveness by calculating the area under the curve (AUC).

Results: Root symptoms (including limb pain and numbness) and necrosis formation exhibited statistically significant differences, with P values of 0.024 and 0.045, respectively. Furthermore, gender, decreased A/G ratio, involvement of thoracic vertebrae, number of damaged vertebrae, and straightening of spinal curvature were identified as independent predictive factors for differentiating between STB and BS, with P values of 0.009, 0.003, < 0.001, 0.005, and 0.014, respectively. ROC analysis revealed that the AUC and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for these five evaluative indicators were 0.626 (0.537-0.714), 0.621 (0.533-0.709), 0.694 (0.612-0.777), 0.597 (0.508-0.686), and 0.631 (0.540-0.722), respectively. The predictive model exhibited an AUC and 95% CI of 0.854 (0.796-0.911), indicating strong predictive performance.

Conclusion: Statistically significant differences were observed between STB and BS regarding root symptoms and necrosis formation. In cases where the patient is male, presents with a decreased A/G ratio, does not have thoracic vertebra involvement, number of vertebral body destructions < 2.5, and exhibits straightening of spinal curvature, the likelihood of diagnosing BS is significantly greater than that of STB.