Application of SPECT/CT in diagnosis and treatment of foot and ankle diseases

The complex function of the ankle joint has greatly complicated the examination of its related diseases. The preliminary method for the assessment of foot and ankle diseases involves radiographic assessment, while MRI is used for further diagnosis. Although ⁹⁹Tc^m-MDP bone scintigraphy is sensitive to changes in bone metabolism, it has poor specificity because of its low resolution and inability to provide anatomical structural information. ⁹⁹Tc^m-MDP SPECT/CT combines the sensitivity of ⁹⁹Tc^m-MDP bone scintigraphy with the anatomical structural information provided by CT to show the localization of uptaken MDP and the structural changes associated with foot and ankle diseases. In recent years, SPECT/CT has been gradually used to assist the diagnosis of foot and ankle diseases. In this article, we discuss the clinical application of SPECT/CT tomographic bone scintigraphy in the diagnosis of foot and ankle diseases.