¹Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Fukui Medical School, Shimoaizuki 23, Matsuoka, Fukui 910-11, Japan

²The First Department of Surgery, Fukui Medical School, Shimoaizuki 23, Matsuoka, Fukui 910-11, Japan

³The First Department of Pathology, Fukui Medical School, Shimoaizuki 23, Matsuoka, Fukui 910-11, Japan

^aAuthor for correspondence

We report an instructive case of a 65-year-old man who presented with a dumb-bell shaped tuberculous abscess across the greater sciatic notch bilaterally compressing both sciatic nerves. Clinical symptoms progressed slowly and mimicked lumbar radiculopathy, thus delaying an accurate diagnosis. Anterolateral retroperitoneal and posterolateral gluteal approaches of the greater sciatic notch as well as the acetabulum on both sides were followed in order to provide safe viewing and resection of the abscess. The abscess wall was adherent to the sciatic nerve and surrounding blood vessels. The symptoms completely disappeared after resection of the abscess.

tuberculous abscess; mycobacterium tuberculosis; sciatic nerve palsy; greater sciatic notch