Nontraumatic Myositis Ossificans as an Uncommon Cause of Scoliosis: Case Report and Review of the Literature

A 5-year-old pediatric patient developed scoliosis associated with nontraumatic myositis ossificans in the lumbar region. Although there have been reports in literature of syndromes leading to widespread muscle ossifications resulting in shoulder deformities owing to impaired movement in the facet joints, to the best of our knowledge there has been no report of scoliosis associated with myositis ossificans. The case presented is of a 5-year-old girl who developed scoliosis associated with nontraumatic myositis ossificans in the lumbar region. On the thoracolumbar radiograph, a hyperintense lesion was seen at the right-side L2-L3 level and scoliosis with a Cobb angle of 16.2° to the right side. The decision for surgery was made with the consideration of the existing scoliosis and that the complaints were associated with paravertebral calcified lesions adjacent to the facet joints. After surgery, the scoliosis improved. Nontraumatic, paravertebral myositis ossificans at an early age is a very rare pathology. Therefore, it must be recognized that spine deformities such as scoliosis and kyphosis can develop in neglected cases of paravertebral myositis ossificans. In addition, there is a high risk of confusion with malignant pathologies, such as osteosarcoma, in this area. Removal of the mass eliminates both the pain of myositis ossificans and prevents the development of scoliosis.