Clinical value of Tc-99m MDP SPECT/CT bone imaging for early diagnosis of Relapsing Polychondritis: a report of 5 cases.

Background: Relapsing Polychondritis(RP) is a rare rheumatic immune disease. As with most diseases, if intervention is delayed, the patient's prognosis is worse. Currently, the diagnostic criteria used in clinical practice do not include CT, PET/CT, SPECT/CT and other new imaging examinations that have developed rapidly in recent years. However, these examinations have some special manifestations for RP, which can help clinicians diagnose RP earlier and distinguish it from other diseases.

Case presentation: These five RP patients all had respiratory symptoms such as cough and wheezing as the first symptom, which could not be diagnosed in time according to the previous diagnostic criteria. The clinical data of the five patients are listed in Table 1. The relatively specific manifestations of SPECT/CT examination provided clinicians with very valuable clues to help them advance the diagnosis time.

Conclusions: The application of SPECT/CT bone imaging in early diagnosing RP proves to be effective, enabling clinicians to intervene promptly and enhance the overall well-being and quality of life for individuals affected by this condition.