Nuclear Medicine Imaging of the Hip and Bony Pelvis

In imaging of the hip and bony pelvis, with the increasing availability of advanced imaging choices, conventional nuclear medicine imaging techniques such as bone and gallium scintigraphy are slowly declining. However, these conventional techniques still have an important role in a few specific indications such as whole-body screening for metastases, differentiation of periprosthetic infection from prosthetic loosening, and in assessing metabolic bone disease such as Paget’s disease. The introduction of SPECT/CT has increased the sensitivity of nuclear medicine imaging by enabling more accurate interpretation of equivocal findings with the help of three-dimensional imaging and better anatomical correlation. Recent revolutionary advanced nuclear medicine imaging techniques such as PET/CT and novel PET tracers have helped nuclear medicine imaging expand its role in the diagnosis of various diseases of the hip and bony pelvis.