Extensive paraspinal abscess complicating tuberculous spondylitis in an adolescent with Pott kyphosis

A 16-year-old girl who suffered from untreated tuberculosis spondylitis since childhood presented with marked Potts kyphotic deformity in adolescence. She had increasing shortness of breath and was admitted for investigation of right pleural effusion. On radiological examination, she was found to have extensive paraspinal abscesses, with the largest collection trapped within the kyphotic angulation in the thoracic region. The latter could only be appreciated with magnetic resonance (MR) imaging and had been overlooked in the initial computed tomography (CT).