{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,15]],"date-time":"2026-09-15T12:30:27Z","timestamp":1789475427904,"version":"build-2803163510"},"reference-count":10,"publisher":"Frontiers Media SA","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2025,9,1]],"date-time":"2025-09-01T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1756684800000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":["frontiersin.org"],"crossmark-restriction":true},"short-container-title":["Front. Med."],"abstract":"<jats:sec><jats:title>Background<\/jats:title><jats:p>Isolated vertebral osteomyelitis represents an uncommon manifestation of chronic Q fever, posing significant diagnostic challenges. We report a case of <jats:italic>Coxiella burnetii<\/jats:italic>-induced spondylodiscitis confirmed via metagenomic next-generation sequencing (mNGS).<\/jats:p><\/jats:sec><jats:sec><jats:title>Case report<\/jats:title><jats:p>A 52-year-old male with occupational avian exposure (pigeon breeder) presented with chronic low back pain persisting for over 1 year, refractory to serial epidural corticosteroid injections. Lumbar MRI demonstrated multifocal osteomyelitis (L3\u2013L5) with associated intraspinal abscess. mNGS analysis of aspirate identified <jats:italic>C. burnetii<\/jats:italic>. Targeted dual antimicrobial therapy (vancomycin\/doxycycline) induced progressive clinical resolution.<\/jats:p><\/jats:sec><jats:sec><jats:title>Conclusion<\/jats:title><jats:p><jats:italic>Coxiella burnetii<\/jats:italic>, the etiological agent of Q fever, exhibits global distribution and poses significant diagnostic challenges. Its clinical manifestations are frequently nonspecific, typically afebrile, and diagnosis is commonly delayed by months to years post-symptom onset. mNGS offers critical diagnostic utility for early identification and therapeutic intervention in rare spinal infections, thereby mitigating complication risks.<\/jats:p><\/jats:sec>","DOI":"10.3389\/fmed.2025.1636778","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2025,9,1]],"date-time":"2025-09-01T05:30:29Z","timestamp":1756704629000},"update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3389\/crossmark-policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":3,"title":["Case Report: Coxiella burnetii vertebral osteomyelitis in a pigeon breeder: mNGS diagnosis of chronic Q fever"],"prefix":"10.3389","volume":"12","author":[{"given":"Minghui","family":"Song","sequence":"first","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Yumei","family":"Guo","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Jiahao","family":"Hao","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Cuiying","family":"Zheng","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Huifen","family":"Zuo","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Jiaqing","family":"Ye","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Chenfeng","family":"Zhang","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Feilong","family":"Chen","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Zhongjun","family":"Feng","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Hong","family":"Zhang","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Zhenjun","family":"Zhao","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Weili","family":"Gao","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Lijie","family":"Zhang","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1965","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2025,9,1]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"241","DOI":"10.1016\/j.jbspin.2015.08.001","article-title":"Vertebral 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