Case Report SALMONELLA INFECTION OF THE HIP

FOR many years it has been the teaching that joint and bone involvement can be a complication of a Salmonella infection; though infrequent in members of the group other than typhoid. However, on perusal of the literature, we can find only one record-ed case of paratyphoid involving a joint in the last twenty years (Lewis 1927), and we consider the following case to be of interest particularly in refer-ence to the diagnosis of an "observation hip". Case Report A twelve-year-old boy was admitted to hospital on the 21.8.61, with a seven day history of slight general malaise and intermittent fever up to 100°F. He had fallen out of bed on the 16th August, and during the following day he complained of a transient pain in the right thigh but apart from thefever there were no abnormal physical signs. Twodays later, he was seen again by his practitionerbecause his temperature had continued to fluctuate; again nothing abnormal was found on examination. A blood count and culture were normal. When visited on the 21st August, he still had a temperature of 100°F. and was complaining of a severe pain in the right thigh and knee, walking with a pronounced limp. He was then transferred to hospital for further investigation. On admission he was found to be an intelligentboy, slightly flushed, with a temperature of 100°F.;his only complaint was of pain in the right thigh and knee, and he denied any history of a gastro-intestinal disturbance during the present period of malaise. General examination was negative, the only abnormal physical sign being a marked limp althoughhip movements were full. He was treated as an "observation hip", the leg being put on skin traction