Osteitisdiagnostik in einem angiologischen patientengut: Vergleich von rontgen- und nuklearmedizinischen untersuchungen

Purpose of the study was to examine the ranking of radiographs and bone scans in the diagnosis of osteitis. Patients and methods: 115 patients with arterial occlusive disease in stage Fontaine IV were referred for examination of the peripheral skeletal parts of the lower extremity. 126 radiographs and bone scans were taken. The time between the two examinations was 10 days maximum to enable direct comparison. Leukocyte scintigraphy was employed as gold standard. Results: The sensitivity of radiographs was 47% with a specificity of 91%. Sensitivity and specificity of bone scans was 78% for both values. The positive predictive values for radiographs and bone scans were 88% and 85%, the negative predictive values were between 80% and 97%. Conclusion: In the majority of cases osteitis can be diagnosed with relatively inexpensive methods such as conventional x-rays and bone scans. Only in unclear cases further examinations such as leukocyte scintigraphy or magnetic resonance imaging should supplement the diagnosis.