Early-Phase SPECT/CT for Diagnosing Osteomyelitis: A Retrospective Pilot Study

Area of Science:

• Nuclear Medicine
• Radiology
• Diagnostic Imaging

Background:

• Osteomyelitis (OM) diagnosis can be challenging.
• Conventional imaging methods may have limitations in early detection.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the diagnostic potential of early-phase single-photon emission computed tomography (SPECT)/computed tomography (CT) using technetium-99m methyl diphosphonate (99mTc-MDP) for osteomyelitis.
• To compare the efficacy of early-phase SPECT/CT with traditional three-phase bone scans (TPBS) and combined delayed-phase SPECT/CT.

Main Methods:

• A retrospective analysis of 21 patients with suspected osteomyelitis.
• Performance of three-phase bone scan (TPBS), early-phase SPECT/CT, and delayed-phase SPECT/CT.
• Comparison of diagnostic accuracy using three criteria: TPBS alone, TPBS with delayed SPECT/CT, and early-phase SPECT/CT alone.

Main Results:

• Early-phase SPECT/CT demonstrated the highest diagnostic performance.
• Sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy for early-phase SPECT/CT were 90.9%, 70.0%, and 87.5%, respectively.
• Traditional TPBS showed lower sensitivity (54.5%) and specificity (50.0%).

Conclusions:

• Early-phase SPECT/CT is a promising imaging technique for diagnosing osteomyelitis.
• Further prospective studies with larger cohorts are warranted to confirm these findings.
• This technique may improve the early and accurate diagnosis of osteomyelitis.