Performance of orthopantomography, planar scintigraphy, CT alone and SPECT/CT in patients with suspected osteomyelitis of the jaw.

Purpose: The aim of this study was to evaluate the performance of a novel flat-panel single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT)/CT in patients with suspicion of osteomyelitis (OM) of the jaw in comparison with conventional orthopantomography (OPT), planar bone scintigraphy (PS) and CT alone.

Methods: Forty-two patients (21 female, 21 male, mean age 52, range 10-84 years) with suspected OM (n = 38) or exacerbation of a known OM (n = 4) were investigated with OPT, CT alone, PS and combined SPECT/CT. Images were separately reviewed by a nuclear physician/radiologist and jaw surgeon regarding presence of OM.