What Researchers Did
Researchers retrospectively reviewed patient data from a Finnish tertiary care hospital between 1998 and 2010 to identify paediatric cases of mandibular osteomyelitis initially misdiagnosed as juvenile recurrent parotitis.
What They Found
Over a 12-year period, six children (aged 5-17 years, five girls) were identified with mandibular osteomyelitis initially diagnosed as recurrent parotitis. Diagnostic delays ranged from 1.5 months to 6.0 years before final diagnosis, confirmed by MRI. Bacterial cultures from biopsies showed Actinomyces or Streptococcus viridans in four of these cases.
Canadian Relevance
This study has no direct Canadian connection as it was conducted in Finland. However, the diagnostic challenge of differentiating mandibular osteomyelitis from recurrent parotitis is relevant to paediatric practitioners in Canada.
Study Limitations
The study's findings are limited by its retrospective design and small sample size of only six patients from a single institution.