Diabetic Charcot joint mimicking acute osteomyelitis in radiography and three-phase radionuclide bone imaging study

Three phase radionuclide bone imaging procedures are used to differentiate cellulitis and osteomyelitis. Acute cellulitis is shown only as increased radioactivity in the blood flow and blood pool images; a persistent area of high activity in a delayed image is usually diagnosed as acute osteomyelitis. We present a patient with Charcot's joint secondary to diabetes mellitus whose three-phase bone imaging as well as radiographic studies revealed a consistent picture of acute osteomyelitis. In the appropriate clinical setting, Charcot's joint, along with several other etiologies (including bone tumors, leukemia, trauma, recent surgery, Paget's disease, and malunion of fracture), should be included in the differential diagnosis.