Imaging of primary sternal osteomyelitis in a patient with Crohn's disease.
A 41-year-old man with known Crohn's disease presented with chest pain and fever. Plain film and CT of the chest were normal, but bone scan and gallium scans showed intense sternal uptake. Surgery revealed staphylococcal osteomyelitis of the sternum. Following appropriate antibiotic treatment, the patient's symptoms resolved and follow-up gallium scans became normal. This is the first report of the association of sternal osteomyelitis and Crohn's disease, although other sites have been described. Sternal osteomyelitis has a high morbidity and the index of suspicion for this condition must be high even in the face of initially negative imaging.
Khoury
Jabour
J
Department of Nuclear Medicine, Western Galilee Hospital, P.O. Box 21, Nahariya 22100, Israel. jjkhoury@netvision.net.il
Jerushalmi
Jacqueline
J
Kats
Igor
I
Mograbi
Ahmed
A
Shtarker
Haim
H
Cohen
Hector Isaac
HI
Loberant
Norman
N
D000328:Adult; D001842:Bone and Bones / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D003424:Crohn Disease / Q000150:complications*; D005710:Gallium Radioisotopes; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010019:Osteomyelitis / Q000150:complications* / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D011877:Radionuclide Imaging; D019275:Radiopharmaceuticals; D013203:Staphylococcal Infections / Q000150:complications* / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D013249:Sternum; D013669:Technetium Tc 99m Medronate; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed
D005710:Gallium Radioisotopes; D019275:Radiopharmaceuticals; D013669:Technetium Tc 99m Medronate