This is the first in a two-part series of articles dealing with orthopedic infections, and will examine osteomyelitis as a clinical condition ·from its initial development through to its clinical resolution. Osteomyelitis is a term describing an inflammatory condition which involves the periosteum, cortex, and/or medullary cavity. While fungal, viral and parasitic invasion of bone are known, it is bacterial contamination and overgrowth that most commonly results in osteomyelitis. Regardless of the particular pathogen involved, bone typically becomes infected by one of two primary routes: hematogenous or exogenous.