title: Increased sacroiliac joint uptake after lumbar fusion and/or laminectomy.
abstract: Of 753 adult patients undergoing SPECT and planar bone scintigraphy for the evaluation of low back pain, 43 (6%) showed either unilateral or bilateral increased sacroiliac joint (SIJ) uptake. Five of the 58 abnormal joints were only identified with SPECT (9%), whereas 20 of the 58 abnormal joints were much more convincingly demonstrated by SPECT (34%). Fifteen of the 43 patients with increased SIJ uptake had undergone prior lumbar laminectomy and/or spinal fusion. Such spinal surgery can increase impact loading on the SIJ, leading to mechanical overload and sacroiliitis. Degenerative joint disease, trauma, or other benign pathology accounted for the remaining patients with increased SIJ uptake. The authors conclude that for patients with a history of lumbar spinal fusion and/or laminectomy, increased SIJ uptake usually is caused by altered spinal mechanics rather than malignancy or infection.
authors.affiliation: Department of Radiology, Medical College of Wisconsin, Milwaukee.
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Onsel
authors.forename: B D
authors.initials: BD
authors.lastname: Collier
authors.forename: K M
authors.initials: KM
authors.lastname: Kir
authors.forename: S J
authors.initials: SJ
authors.lastname: Larson
authors.forename: G A
authors.initials: GA
authors.lastname: Meyer
authors.forename: A Z
authors.initials: AZ
authors.lastname: Krasnow
authors.forename: A T
authors.initials: AT
authors.lastname: Isitman
authors.forename: R S
authors.initials: RS
authors.lastname: Hellman
authors.forename: G F
authors.initials: GF
authors.lastname: Carrera
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001416:Back Pain / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000453:epidemiology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007796:Laminectomy; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012446:Sacroiliac Joint / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D013123:Spinal Fusion; D013669:Technetium Tc 99m Medronate; D015899:Tomography, Emission-Computed, Single-Photon
chemical_list: D013669:Technetium Tc 99m Medronate