Receiving.

A 43-year-old man, who currently uses drugs intravenously, presents to the emergency department (ED) with 2 weeks of fever, back pain, and progressive weakness in his arms bilaterally. He reports having a cough with whitish sputum.  He denies any history of recent trauma. His blood pressure (BP) is 130/75 mm Hg, heart rate (HR) is 106 beats per minute, temperature is 103°F, and respiratory rate (RR) is 16 breaths per minute. On physical exam, he has tenderness to palpation in the midthoracic spine, and decreased strength in the upper extremities bilaterally, with normal range of motion. Laboratory results reveal a white blood cell (WBC) count of 15,500/μL, hematocrit 40%, and platelets 225/μL. Which of the following is the most likely diagnosis?
a. Lung Abscess
b. Ankylosing spondylitis
c. Spinal epidural abscess
d. Vertebral compression fracture
e. Spinal metastatic lesion

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quizzER is a weekly contest consisting of a question selected from various areas of emergency medicine that are central to the education of medical students and residents in training.

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