Bone scintigraphy in the diagnosis and treatment planning of condylar hyperplasia

Pichai Vittayakitpong, D. of Surgery, F. of Dentistry, PSU.
Prisana Pripatananont, Assoc. Prof., D.of Surgery, F. of Dentistry, PSU.
Corresponding e-mail : vpichai@ratree.psu.ac.th

Published : J Dent Assoc Thailand 2000, 50(5) : 407-414.
Key words : bone scintigraphy, bone can, condylar hyperplasia, planar bone scan, SPECT

Condylar hyperplasia is a complex deformity of the condyle and mandible. Therapeutic principles of these anomalies depend on whether condylar growth has stopped. Planar bone has been used to assess growth activity by detection of the uptake radioisitope in growing bone. There are advantages of bone scan over clinical assessments that it can be done at one point in time to detect which side is affect and the status of the hyperplastic process. However planar bone scan can not really isolate the right and left anatomy in lateral views which results in difficulty evaluation of complex facial anatomy. The single photon emission tomography (SPECT) allows three dimensional imaging and the localization is better than that of planar imaging. At present there is no standard measurement of normal isotope activity in SPECT when compare to the reference bone such as clivus. Additionally, in growing patients whom the spheno-occipital synchondrosis is still active,the reference point of clivus can not be used. This article presents basic knowledge of bone scintigraphy and review studies using bone scan in diagnosis and assessment of condylar hyperplasia.

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