Clinical value of SPECT/CT and MRI in differential diagnosis of spinal tumor and spinal tuberculosis

Objective To evaluate the applied value of SPECT/CT and MRI in the differential diagnosis of spinal tumor and spinal tuberculosis. Methods The clinical data of 141 patients pathologically diagnosed with spinal tumor or spinal tuberculosis from Jan. 2013 to Dec. 2016 were retrospectively reviewed including age, gender, medical history, number of the vertebral lesions, and SPECT/CT and MRI imaging diagnosis. The accuracy of SPECT/CT and MRI in the diagnosis of spinal tumors or spinal tuberculosis was compared by using preoperative biopsy or postoperative pathology examination as the diagnostic gold standard, the positioning ability of SPECT/CT and MRI to locate the lesion vertebral body was also compared. Results Of the 141 patients, 82 cases were diagnosed with spinal tumor and 59 cases were with spinal tuberculosis. The consistency analysis showed that no statistical difference existed among the Kappa coefficients of SPECT/CT, MRI and SPECT/CT combined with MRI (0.747, 0.24 and 0.884, respectively) when compared with pathological diagnosis (P=0.111). No significant difference was also shown in the positioning ability of the three methods to locate the lesion vertebral body (P=0.155). Conclusion Both SPECT/CT and MRI have higher diagnostic value in differential diagnosis of spinal tumor and spinal tuberculosis, and SPECT/CT can be used as alternative method for patients who are unsuitable for MRI examination.