Imaging of bone metastasis: An update.

Early detection of skeletal metastasis is critical for accurate staging and optimal treatment. This paper briefly reviews our current understanding of the biological mechanisms through which tumours metastasise to bone and describes the available imaging methods to diagnose bone metastasis and monitor response to treatment. Among the various imaging modalities currently available for imaging skeletal metastasis, hybrid techniques which fuse morphological and functional data are the most sensitive and specific, and positron emission tomography (PET)/computed tomography and PET/magnetic resonance imaging will almost certainly continue to evolve and become increasingly important in this regard.

Imaging of the postoperative hip.

A basic understanding of the surgical approach, technique, and potential complications in addition to the types of hardware used is essential in interpreting postoperative imaging of the hip. This article reviews the various surgical approaches to the hip and hardware components in total hip arthroplasty and hip preservation surgery and the potential complications that may arise. The various surgical treatments in the management of acetabular dysplasia and avascular necrosis and the imaging appearances of these on different imaging modalities are also discussed.

Intramedullary versus extramedullary alignment of the tibial component in the Triathlon knee.

BACKGROUND: Long term survivorship in total knee arthroplasty is significantly dependant on prosthesis alignment. Our aim was determine which alignment guide was more accurate in positioning of the tibial component in total knee arthroplasty. We also aimed to assess whether there was any difference in short term patient outcome. METHOD: A comparison of intramedullary versus extramedullary alignment jig was performed. Radiological alignment of tibial components and patient outcomes of 103 Triathlon total knee arthroplasties were analysed. RESULTS: Use of the intramedullary was found to be significantly more accurate in determining coronal alignment (p = 0.02) while use of the extramedullary jig was found to give more accurate results in sagittal alignment (p = 0.04). There was no significant difference in WOMAC or SF-36 at six months. CONCLUSION: Use of an intramedullary jig is preferable for positioning of the tibial component using this knee system.