title: Clinical benefit of SPECT/CT for follow-up of surgical treatment of osteochondritis dissecans.
abstract: We present the case of a 17-year-old ice-hockey player, who complained about persistent left medial knee pain having undergone a refixation of a grade III osteochondritis dissecans with biodegradable pins, a reconstruction of the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) and a medial meniscal repair 1 year previously. Sequential MRIs performed 8 and 12 months after surgery were inconclusive, and failed to show the insufficient integration of the osteochondral fragment. Combined single photon emission and conventional computerized tomography (SPECT/CT) clearly revealed the cause of the patient's persistent knee problems-the osteochondral fragment had not integrated. SPECT/CT may hold great clinical value for symptomatic patients who have previously undergone treatment for osteochondral lesions, and it should be considered as alternative diagnostic imaging modality.
authors.affiliation: Musculoskeletal Surgery Department, Imperial College, London, UK.
authors.forename: Praveen
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Konala
authors.forename: Farhad
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Iranpour
authors.forename: Anna
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Kerner
authors.forename: Helmut
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Rasch
authors.forename: Niklaus F
authors.initials: NF
authors.lastname: Friederich
authors.forename: Michael T
authors.initials: MT
authors.lastname: Hirschmann
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D010008:Osteochondritis Dissecans / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000601:surgery*; D015899:Tomography, Emission-Computed, Single-Photon; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed