[Bone tissue metabolic features in tuberculous and nonspecific large joint lesions as evidenced by osteoscintigraphy]

Osteoscintigraphy was employed to study the bone tissue in 405 patients referred for tuberculous arthritis and its sequels or suspected tuberculosis. Tuberculous lesion was identified in 228 patients; there were nonspecific arthritides (n = 69), dystrophic diseases (n = 88), tumors (n = 8), and no bone involvement (n = 12). In active tuberculous ostitis, radiotracer hyperfixation (HF) was found to be marked and it was normal when the disease subsided. In tuberculous arthritis in the arthritic phase (synovitis and in full swing) HF was higher than that in arthrosis; in complicated forms (fistulas and abscesses) HF showed 5-to 15-fold increases in 19.5%. An insignificant HF was observed at the stage of subsidence. In nonspecific arthritis and dystrophic arthrosis, HF depended on the activity and stage of involvement. This procedure could provide an objective assessment of bone tissue changes, by substantially supplementing the basic X-ray study in both the examination of patients and the determination of further treatment policy.