Related Experiment Video
Updated: Mar 6, 2026
06:23
Diagnosis and Surgical Treatment of Human Brucellar Spondylodiscitis
Published on: May 23, 2021
5.5K
The Accessory Sacroiliac Joint Diagnosed With Bone SPECT/CT
Ji-Hun Kang1, Min-Woo Kim, Eun Ha Moon
1From the Departments of *Emergency Medicine, †Nuclear Medicine, ‡Radiology, and §Rehabilitation Medicine, Presbyterian Medical Center, Jeonju, Jeonbuk, Republic of Korea.
Clinical Nuclear Medicine
|March 14, 2017
Summary
Accessory sacroiliac (SI) joints are a common cause of lower back pain. This case highlights how SPECT/CT imaging can effectively diagnose these accessory SI joints, aiding in pain management.
Area of Science:
- Orthopedics
- Radiology
- Anatomy
Background:
- Lower back pain is a prevalent condition with multifactorial causes.
- Accessory sacroiliac (SI) joints, though not rare, can be an overlooked source of chronic low back pain.
- Diagnostic challenges exist in identifying accessory SI joints using conventional imaging.
Observation:
- A 35-year-old woman presented with chronic lower back pain.
- Conventional radiography yielded equivocal results for SI joint pathology.
- Bone scintigraphy indicated mild increased uptake in the left SI joint region.
Findings:
- SPECT/CT imaging revealed increased radiotracer uptake in accessory articulations between the sacral alae and iliac bones.
- This confirmed the diagnosis of accessory SI joints.
- The findings illustrate characteristic SPECT/CT imaging features of accessory SI joints.
Implications:
- SPECT/CT provides crucial diagnostic information for accessory SI joints when conventional methods are inconclusive.
- Accurate diagnosis of accessory SI joints can guide targeted treatment for chronic lower back pain.
- This case underscores the importance of considering accessory SI joints in the differential diagnosis of persistent low back pain.
