What is the treatment for osteomyelitis?

Condition analysis:
In many cases, osteomyelitis can be effectively treated with antibiotics and pain medications. If a biopsy is obtained, this can help guide the choice of the best antibiotic. In some cases, the affected area will be immobilized with a brace to reduce the pain and speed the treatment.

Sometimes, surgery may be necessary. If there is an area of localized bacteria (abscess), this may need to be opened, washed out, and drained. If there is damaged soft tissue or bone, this may need to be removed. If bone needs to be removed, it may need to be replaced with bone graft or stabilized during surgery.

Instructions:
Surgical Procedures: In some cases you may need surgery, such as:

-- Draining the infected area, to get rid of pus or fluid.

-- Removing bone and tissue, called debridement.

-- Restoring circulation to the bone. The doctor may replace any diseased bone with a graft of bone or muscle from elsewhere in your body, to help restore blood flow to the bone.

-- Removing any foreign objects, such as screws or pins used to set the bone before.