Mehmet Süleyman Abul, Ebubekir Bektaş, Hüseyin Bilgehan Çevik, Engin Eceviz
Southern Clinics of Istanbul Eurasia - 2025;36(4):310-316
Objective: To evaluate the presentation, diagnosis, and outcomes of pediatric Garré 's scle-rosing osteomyelitis of long bones. Methods: We retrospectively reviewed 11 pediatric cases of long bone Garré 's osteomyeli-tis treated between 2011 and 2019. Clinical, imaging, laboratory, microbiological, and out-come data were recorded, and all patients underwent biopsy for definitive diagnosis Results: The 11 patients (ages 1-18 years) typically presented with chronic bone pain and minimal or no systemic symptoms. The femur was most commonly affected (5 cases), fol-lowed by the tibia (4 cases). Radiographs showed cortical thickening and periosteal new bone formation without osteolysis or abscess. Biopsy confirmed chronic o steomyelitis in all cases with no malignancy. Cultures identified a pathogen in 7 patients (64%): Staphylococcus au-reus was most frequent (5 cases), with one Salmonella and one M. tuberculosis. All patients were treated with prolonged antibiotics; 6 also underwent surgical debridement. At follow-up, infection resolved in all patients. One staphylococcal humerus case had a late recurrence requiring repeat surger y, but was ultimately cured. No long-term functional de ficits were observed. Conclusion: Garré 's chronic sclerosing osteomyelitis of long bones is an important consid-eration in children with atypical chronic bone lesions to avoid misdiagnosis as malignanc y. Imaging alone can be misleading, and confirmatory biopsy is essential. Appropriate antibiotic therapy combined with surgical intervention when needed results in excellent outcomes, with most patients achieving full recover y. Early recognition and a multidisciplinary approach are key to successful management.
