The diagnostic value of [(18)F]FDG PET for the detection of chronic osteomyelitis and implant-associated infection.

Abstract

The diagnosis of osteomyelitis and implant-associated infections in patients with nonspecific laboratory or radiological findings is often unsatisfactory. We retrospectively evaluated the contributions of [(18)F]FDG PET and [(18)F]FDG PET/CT to the diagnosis of osteomyelitis and implant-associated infections, enabling timely and appropriate decision-making for further therapy options. [(18)F]FDG PET or PET/CT was performed in 215 patients with suspected osteomyelitis or implant-associated infections between 2000 and 2013. We assessed the diagnostic accuracy of both modalities together and separately with reference to intraoperative microbial findings, with a mean clinical follow-up of 69 ± 49months. Infections were diagnosed clinically in 101 of the 215 patients. PET and PET/CT scans revealed 87 true-positive, 76 true-negative, 38 false-positive, and 14 false-negative results, indicating a sensitivity of 86%, a specificity of 67%, a positive predictive value (PPV) of 70%, a negative predictive value (NPV) of 84% and an accuracy of 76%. The sensitivity of PET/CT was 88%, but specificity, PPV, NPV and accuracy (76%, 76%, 89% and 82%, respectively) were higher than those of stand-alone PET. [(18)F]FDG PET is able to identify with high sensitivity the presence of osteomyelitis in orthopaedic surgery patients with nonspecific clinical symptoms of infection.