Dolor lumbar como manifestación inusual en una valvulopatía: ejemplo de dificultad en el diagnóstico etiológico de las lumbalgias crónicas

Abstract

Low back pain is the most frequent complaint in chronic pain units. The differential diagnosis among the distinct causes is frequently difficult. The “red flags” of low back pain consist of a series of “signs and symptoms” that should warn clinicians of the possibility of the severity of the symptom and have been the subject of numerous publications. The present case report aims to highlight the need to take a detailed clinical history and to reevaluate patients with a prior diagnosis referred by other services in order to avoid diagnostic and treatment errors. We present the case of a 55-year-old man, who was referred to the chronic pain clinic by the internal medicine service, with a diagnosis of chronic low back pain unresponsive to analgesics. For the previous 2 years, the patient had reported moderate-severe pain in the lower dorsal and lumbar region. Seventeen years previously, a prosthetic mitral valve had been implanted. The patient's chronic pain episodes were exacerbated by crises of acute pain in the lower dorsal region radiating to the lumbar and inguinal areas. Although acute hemolytic anemia is described as an etiology of low back pain, this antecedent was not taken into account as a probable cause of the pain. Lumbar magnetic resonance imaging showed degenerative osteoarthritis. Replacement of the prosthetic valve resolved the lumbar pain and hemolysis. One year later, the patient remains asymptomatic.