Fluorodeoxyglucose Positron Emission Tomography Evaluation of Chronic Recurrent Multifocal Osteomyelitis

Chronic recurrent multifocal osteomyelitis (CRMO) is an autoinflammatory bone disease that predominantly affects children and adolescents. Currently, CRMO diagnoses are based on a combination of clinical, radiological, pathological, and longitudinal findings. However, distinguishing CRMO from malignant bone tumors using imaging is occasionally challenging. Fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) positron emission tomography (PET) imaging characteristics in CRMO (specifically, the maximum standardized uptake value (SUVmax)) have been described previously. The lesions exhibited increased FDG uptake despite the benign nature of the disease; the SUVmax was notably high (4.90). These findings suggest that FDG/PET plays a limited role in the differential diagnosis of CRMO.