title: Can imaging modalities be used as follow-up criteria after brucellar sacroiliitis treatment?
abstract: BACKGROUND
  This study aimed to identify a follow-up modality that can be used to evaluate therapeutic responses in patients receiving treatment for brucellar sacroillitis and to determine whether antibiotherapy can be stopped.
  
  
  METHODS
  A total of 32 patients with sacroiliac joint involvement demonstrated via magnetic resonance imaging or bone scintigraphy were followed up and treated. Patients received 200 mg/day of doxycycline and 600-900 mg/day of rifampicin for 3-21 months, and 1 g/day of streptomycin for 21 days.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The mean age of the 32 patients involved was 21.81±4.09. In total, 10/32 patients did not complete therapy, and the remaining 22 patients received combination antibiotic treatment for a mean of 8.95±4.34 months. Of the 22 patients, 15 underwent MRI, and 7 of them did not consent to MRI. Similarly, 17 patients were followed up by bone scintigraphy, and 5 patients did not have scintigraphy results. In 9/17 patients followed up with bone scintigraphy, sacroiliitis findings were found to reduce after a mean of 7.44±3.71 months, whereas in 12/15 patients on whom MRI was performed,  there were no active sacroiliitis findings for a mean of 6.95±2.83 months.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  While active involvement findings in bone scintigraphy were observed for a longer period in scintigraphy images, active sacroiliitis findings disappeared in a relatively shorter period of time with MRI. Therefore, we have demonstrated that high-resolution MRI is a very sensitive technique compared to scintigraphy.
authors.affiliation: Gulhane Military Medical Academy and School of Medicine, General Tevfik Saglam Street, Ankara, Turkey. aybarsbil@hotmail.com.
authors.forename: Aybars
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Bilgeturk
authors.forename: Hanefi Cem
authors.initials: HC
authors.lastname: Gul
authors.forename: Ahmet
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Karakas
authors.forename: Gurkan
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Mert
authors.forename: Cumhur
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Artuk
authors.forename: Can Polat
authors.initials: CP
authors.lastname: Eyigun
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D002006:Brucellosis / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000188:drug therapy; D004318:Doxycycline / Q000008:administration & dosage; D016903:Drug Monitoring / Q000379:methods*; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging / Q000379:methods*; D008297:Male; D011877:Radionuclide Imaging / Q000379:methods*; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012293:Rifampin / Q000008:administration & dosage; D058566:Sacroiliitis / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000188:drug therapy*; D013307:Streptomycin / Q000008:administration & dosage; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents; D004318:Doxycycline; D012293:Rifampin; D013307:Streptomycin