Role of Nuclear Medicine for Diagnosing Infection of Recently Implanted Lower Extremity Arthroplasties

Infection is an infrequent complication of lower extremity prosthetic joint surgery. Approximately one-third develop within 3 months (early), another third within 1 year (delayed), and the remainder more than 1 year (late) after surgery. Diagnosing prosthetic joint infection, especially in the early postoperative period during the first year, is challenging. Pain is almost always present. The presence of fever is variable, ranging from less than 5% to more than 40% of patients. Leukocytosis is a poor predictor of infection.

Source: Seminars in Nuclear Medicine - July 26, 2017 Category: Nuclear Medicine Authors: Christopher J. Palestro, Charito Love Source Type: research