Abstract

Hereditary Hemorrhagic Telangiectasia or Osler-Weber-Rendu syndrome is a dominant autonomic disorder caused by mutations of the endoglin gene or the kinase gene similar to the activin receptor. This disease is characterized by the presence of telangiectasia on skin and mucous, recurrent and spontaneous epistaxis, as well as arteriovenous malformations in lungs, brain and gastrointestinal system. The association between this disease and infections in several places of the body with Staphylococcus aureus has been reported. The mechanisms of this predisposition include the presence of arteriovenous fistulas and polymorphonuclear dysfunction. A case is reported about a patient carrying the disease associated with vertebral osteomyelitis, who required a prolonged antibiotic treatment and instrumentation of the vertebral column at thoracic level. It is necessary to consider this type of infections in patients with this disease, which may help when choosing the antibiotic treatment and a more expeditious patient management.

Keywords Hereditary Hemorrhagic Telangiectasia; Osler-Weber-Rendu syndrome; Staphylococcus aureus (SA); vertebral osteomyelitis