Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 20, 2026

Combined In vivo Optical and µCT Imaging to Monitor Infection, Inflammation, and Bone Anatomy in an Orthopaedic Implant Infection in Mice
Published on: October 16, 2014
[SPECT/CT diagnostics for skeletal infections]
B Klaeser1, M Spanjol, T Krause
1Universitätsklinik für Nuklearmedizin, Inselspital Bern, Freiburgstr. 10, CH-3010, Bern, Schweiz. bernd.klaeser@insel.ch
Clinical/Methodical Issue:
Skeletal infections are often a diagnostic and clinical challenge.
Standard Radiological Methods:
Nuclear imaging modalities used in the diagnostic workup of acute and chronic skeletal infections include three-phase bone scintigraphy and scintigraphy with labelled leucocytes.
Methodical Innovations:
The introduction of hybrid technologies, such as single photon emission computed tomography/computed tomography (SPECT/CT) has dramatically changed nuclear medical imaging of infections.
Performance:
In general SPECT/CT leads to a considerably more accurate diagnosis than planar or SPECT imaging.
Achievements:
Given the integrated acquisition of metabolic, functional and morphological information, SPECT/CT has increased in particular the specificity of three-phase skeletal scanning and scintigraphy with labeled leucocytes.
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