Comparison of [18F] FDG-PET/MRI and Clinical Findings for Assessment of Suspected Lumbar Facet Joint Pain: A Prospective Study to Characterize Candidate Nonanatomic Imaging Biomarkers and Potential Impact on Management [SPINE]

CONCLUSIONS:
There was low concordance of perifacet signal change and FDG activity with clinically implicated facet joints. This could indicate either the potential to change patient management or a lack of biomarker accuracy. Therefore, additional larger randomized studies with the use of comparative medial branch blocks would be useful to further investigate the clinical utility of these findings.

Source: American Journal of Neuroradiology - October 7, 2019 Category: Radiology Authors: Lehman, V. T., Diehn, F. E., Broski, S. M., Nathan, M. A., Kemp, B. J., Larson, N. B., Shelerud, R. A., Brault, J. S., Halasy, M. P., Maus, T. P. Tags: SPINE Source Type: research