Osteoid osteomas of the hand. Report of three cases and review of the literature

Osteoid osteoma is infrequently localized to the hand. Initially the lesion causes unspecific symptoms, and the radiographic changes are discrete. Three cases were seen during a period of 5 years. Bone scintigraphy was a useful diagnostic tool, and CT facilitated the identification of the nidus. One of the lesions was a double nidus osteoid osteoma of the scaphoid bone. Only 12 instances of multifocal osteoid osteomas have been reported, none of which was localized to the carpal bones.     

Osteoid osteoma: radionuclide diagnosis

The double-density sign, seen on radionuclide bone scans, is described for diagnosing osteoid osteomas and for localizing the nidus. Its use in differentiating the nidus of an osteoid osteoma from osteomyelitis is also described. The utility of computed tomography in localization of the nidus is also illustrated. The double-density sign was helpful in diagnosing seven cases of surgically confirmed osteoid osteoma.     

Computerized tomography and scintigraphy in the evaluation of osteoid osteoma

The authors report their experience of bone scintigraphy and computed tomography in 19 patients, with suspected osteoid osteomas, who underwent surgery. Basing on surgical findings, the role of these techniques in diagnosis, surgical planning and follow-up of osteoid osteoma is stressed and the results are compared with those of conventional radiography.     

Peritumoral edema in osteoid osteoma on magnetic resonance imaging

Objective.To determine whether there is a relationship between the peritumoral edema caused by osteoid osteoma seen on magnetic resonance (MR) imaging and the patient’s age, duration of symptoms, or location of the lesion. Design and patients. All histologically proven osteoid osteomas seen in our institutions during a 5-year period in patients with known age, gender, duration of symptoms, and available radiological and MR imaging examinations were included in this study. The extent of the edema in the bone marrow and extraosseous soft tissue around the nidus of osteoid osteoma on T2-weighted MR imaging were graded from 1 (nonexistent) to 4 (extensive) by two masked observers. The relationships between the patient’s age, duration of symptoms, and location of lesions were evaluated by Pearson’s correlation coefficient and analysis of variance. Results.Twenty-seven cases met the inclusion criteria. The observer agreement on grading was good. Patients of 15 years of age or younger had significantly higher grades than patients older than 15 years. There was a moderate negative linear correlation between the patient’s age and peritumoral edema. No significant relationship was identified between edema and the duration of symptoms or the location of lesions. Conclusion. Osteoid osteomas in younger patients tend to be associated with more extensive peritumoral edema. Received: 13 March 1998 Revision requested: 3 August 1998 Revision received: 12 January 1999 Accepted: 2 March 1999     

Osteoid osteoma: percutaneous laser ablation and follow-up in 114 patients

PURPOSE: To retrospectively evaluate the effectiveness of interstitial laser ablation (ILA) as a curative treatment of osteoid osteoma. Materials and METHODS: Ethical review board approval was obtained for the retrospective study. Informed consent was waived. From June 1994 to June 2004, 114 patients (mean age, 22.3 years) suspected of having osteoid osteoma underwent ILA with a diode laser (805 nm). An optical fiber was introduced into the nidus of the osteoid osteoma, and 400-3000 J of energy was delivered, depending on the size and location of the nidus. Twelve spinal osteoid osteomas were treated; in five of these cases, the nidus was located fewer than 8 mm from the adjacent nerve roots, and slow epidural or periradicular infusion of normal saline was used to avoid thermal damage to neurologic structures. Pain was evaluated with a visual analog scale (VAS) and medication. ILA was considered successful (score, 0) when complete pain relief was achieved (VAS score, <1) without medication. RESULTS: One week after ILA, 112 patients had a score of 0. One week after ILA, one patient had pain that persisted for 2 months because of reflex sympathetic dystrophy. At follow-up (mean, 58.5 months; range, 13-130 months), six patients had recurrence of pain from 6 weeks to 27 months after the initial ILA. These recurrences were treated successfully with a second ILA. Only one unsuccessful treatment was encountered. CONCLUSION: Percutaneous ILA is an effective treatment for osteoid osteoma.     

99Tc^m-MDP骨显像评估脊柱骨样骨瘤及成骨细胞瘤射频消融效果

目的探讨99Tcm-亚甲基二磷酸盐骨显像对脊柱骨样骨瘤和成骨细胞瘤射频消融疗效评估的价值。资料与方法回顾性收集行射频消融的7例脊柱骨样骨瘤及成骨细胞瘤患者的影像学及临床资料,分析骨显像、CT表现与患者症状、随访结果的关系。结果7例患者(其中骨样骨瘤4例,成骨细胞瘤3例)接受8次射频消融。治疗后2例无疼痛复发,第3、6个月骨显像呈轻度浓聚,其中1例第3个月CT示病变缩小,第12个月消失。3例第4~5个月疼痛复发,骨显像呈轻度浓聚1例,显著浓聚2例,同期CT示病变较治疗前均无变化,继续随访患者疼痛消失。2例射频消融后仍有间断轻度疼痛,第9、12个月骨显像均呈显著浓聚,同期CT示病变缩小1例,增大1例,患者后续分别行手术和再次射频消融。结论骨显像能够早期判断骨样骨瘤和成骨细胞瘤射频消融后病变的活性。骨显像轻度浓聚预示病变治愈,显著浓聚提示病变尚存活性,需继续随访。     

Percutaneous laser photocoagulation of osteoid osteomas under CT guidance

AIM: The aim was to evaluate laser photocoagulation and the use of the Bonopty needle system in the treatment of osteoid osteoma. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Five patients with osteoid osteomas were treated with computed tomography (CT)-guided, percutaneous laser photocoagulation using the Bonopty biopsy system. RESULTS: Complete pain relief was obtained in four patients. In one patient, pain persisted until the 6 weeks follow-up but resolved within 24 h of repeating the procedure. There were no complications, and patients remained symptom free at follow-up of 4-23 months (mean, 14 months). CONCLUSION: CT-guided laser photocoagulation of osteoid osteoma is a minimally invasive technique that represents a cost-effective alternative to surgical excision. The Bonopty needle system allows successful penetration of the sclerotic bone surrounding the nidus with manual pressure alone.     

MR imaging-guided laser ablation of osteoid osteomas with use of optical instrument guidance at 0.23 T

The purpose of this study was to determine the feasibility and features of low-field MR imaging in performing interstitial laser ablation of osteoid osteomas. Between September 2001 and April 2002, five consecutive patients with clinical and imaging findings suggesting osteoid osteoma and referred for removal of osteoid osteoma were treated with interstitial laser treatment. A low-field open-configuration MRI scanner (0.23 T, Outlook Proview, Philips Medical Systems, Finland) with optical instrument guidance hardware and software was used. Laser device used was of ND-Yag type (Fibertom medilas, Dornier Medizin Technik, Germany). A bare laser fiber (Dornier Medizin Technik, Germany) with a diameter of 400 μm was used. Completely balanced steady-state (CBASS; true fast imaging with steady precession) imaging was used for lesion localization, instrument guidance, and thermal monitoring. A 14-G (Cook Medical, USA) bone biopsy drill was used for initial approach. Laser treatment was conducted through the biopsy canal. All the lesions were successfully localized, targeted, and treated under MRI guidance. All the patients were symptom free 3 weeks and 3 months after the treatment. There was one recurrence reported during follow-up (6 months). The MRI-guided percutaneous interstitial laser ablation of osteoid osteomas seems to be a feasible treatment mode.     

Osteoid osteoma: the difficult diagnosis

The diagnosis of osteoid osteoma can be difficult. We present eight children where the diagnosis of osteoid osteoma was difficult, due to a clinical history suggesting an alternative diagnosis, misleading radiological findings, or where the osteoid osteoma was in an unusual site. In some cases, diagnosis was only reached after biopsy, despite radiological investigation and radioisotope studies. The diagnosis should be considered in a child with bony pain or bony swelling, especially where the history is a chronic one. We present a radiological algorithm for the investigation of patients suspected of having an osteoid osteoma.     

Osteoid osteoma: operative confirmation of complete removal by bone scintigraphy

The high sensitivity of bone scintigraphy in detecting osteoid osteoma throughout the skeleton has been documented. Recently, radioactive surgical specimens of osteoid osteomas were studied with microradiography, autoradiography, and well-counter scintimetry and were shown to concentrate most of the radionuclide within the nidus of the lesion. These techniques also proved helpful to surgeons in achieving cure with conservative bone excision. We present two cases of osteoid osteoma, one of them recurrent, in which the patients were injected with bone-seeking agent just prior to surgery. The excised specimens were immediately imaged and the entire nidus was seen, confirming the complete removal of the lesion. This simple and rapid procedure is suggested whenever difficulty is anticipated in removal of an osteoid osteoma.     

Postoperative radionuclide evaluation of osteoid osteomas

Five cases of clinically suspected osteoid osteomas were studied by preoperative injection of technetium-99m methylene disphosphonate, intraoperative localization with a radiation-sensitive scintillation probe, and postoperative examination of the entire tissue specimen (including the presumed nidus and surrounding bone). Microradiography and light microscopy were also used. In addition, a new autoradiography technique was introduced in which the excised surgical specimen was placed on undeveloped x-ray film for pathologic localization, diagnosis of the lesions, and a study of the relative intensity of radioactive uptake in the nidus vs. surrounding bone. Autoradiography revealed that the nidus showed the greatest concentration of radioactivity, followed by the surrounding bone. The authors conclude that 99mTc can be used clinically in localizing osteoid osteomas and that preoperative and intraoperative scanning can assist in conservative surgical excision, e.g., minimal extirpation of bone in delicate areas such as the spine. For small lesions, autoradiography assists the pathologist in identifying an osteoid osteoma.     

Percutaneous resection under computed tomography guidance of osteoid osteoma. Mid-term follow-up of 38 cases]

PURPOSE: To evaluate the mid-term outcome following CT-guided percutaneous resection of osteoid osteoma. MATERIALS AND METHODS: 38 patients who had been treated by CT-guided percutaneous resection were included. The mean follow-up of 3.7 years. Early and mid-term outcome and histology were analyzed. RESULTS: Histological samples were adequate in 92% of cases and a diagnosis of osteoid osteoma was confirmed in 73.7% of cases. In 6 cases, the lesion was not an osteoid osteoma: 2 mucoid cysts, 1 benign fibrous dysplasia, 1 fibromucoid lesion, 1 focal osteochondritis, 1 osteomyelitis. Cure was achieved in 84.2% of patients. Minor transient complications occurred in 23.7% of cases. The most serious complications included: 1 intramuscular hematoma, 2 femoral fractures, and 1 case of S. aureus osteomyelitis. CONCLUSION: This study confirms that CT-guided percutaneous resection of osteoid osteomas is effective and shows that other small lesions can also be treated using this technique.     

Imaging of osteoid osteoma with dynamic gadolinium-enhanced MR imaging

PURPOSE: To compare dynamic gadolinium-enhanced T1-weighted magnetic resonance (MR) imaging with nonenhanced T1-weighted and T2-weighted MR imaging and thin-section computed tomography (CT) for the demonstration of osteoid osteomas. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The images of 11 patients with pathologically proven osteoid osteomas who underwent nonenhanced MR imaging, dynamic gadolinium-enhanced MR imaging, and CT were retrospectively reviewed. Images obtained with all three techniques were scored for conspicuity of the osteoid osteoma relative to the surrounding bone. Time-enhancement curves were generated from signal intensity measurements of these lesions and the adjacent bone marrow. The mean imaging scores of the four techniques were compared, and the statistical significance was calculated by using a linear model with terms for method and patient. Pairwise comparisons were made by using the Tukey-Kramer adjustment for multiple comparisons. RESULTS: Compared with CT, dynamic gadolinium-enhanced MR imaging demonstrated the osteoid osteoma equally well in eight of 11 patients and with better conspicuity in three of 11 patients, although this difference was not statistically significant (P =.69). The dynamic gadolinium-enhanced MR images demonstrated the osteoid osteomas significantly better than the nonenhanced T1-weighted (P <.001) and T2-weighted (P <.001) MR images. On the dynamic gadolinium-enhanced MR images, nine (82%) of 11 patients had peak enhancement of the osteoid osteoma in the arterial phase with early partial washout, compared with slower, progressive enhancement of the adjacent marrow. This resulted in greatest lesion to marrow contrast material enhancement in the arterial phase. One osteoid osteoma had peak enhancement in the venous phase, and one showed progressive enhancement through all phases to 150 seconds. CONCLUSION: Osteoid osteomas can be imaged with greater conspicuity by using dynamic gadolinium-enhanced instead of nonenhanced MR imaging and with conspicuity equal to or better than that obtained with thin-section CT.     

Osteoid osteoma of the neck of the talus

The authors present three cases of osteoid osteoma of the neck of the talus presenting with pain and restriction of ankle movement affecting athletic performance in young adults. If this condition is suspected in a patient, a bone scan will confirm the diagnosis. The result of treatment is positive in terms of relief of pain and return to activities in our patients.     

CT-guided percutaneous laser photocoagulation of osteoid osteomas of the hands and feet

Percutaneous local ablation of osteoid osteoma has largely replaced surgery, except in the small bones of the hands and feet. The objective of this study was to describe the technical specificities and results of computed tomography (CT)-guided percutaneous laser photocoagulation in 15 patients with osteoid osteomas of the hands and feet. We retrospectively examined the medical charts of the 15 patients who were treated with CT-guided percutaneous laser photocoagulation therapy at our institution between 1994 and 2004. The 15 patients had a mean age of 24.33 years. None of them had received any prior surgical or percutaneous treatment for the osteoid osteoma. The follow-up period was 24 to 96 months (mean, 49.93). The pain resolved completely within 1 week. Fourteen patients remained symptom-free throughout the follow-up period; the remaining patient experienced a recurrence of pain after 24 months, underwent a second laser photocoagulation procedure, and was symptom-free at last follow-up 45 months later. No adverse events related to the procedure or to the location of the tumor in the hand or the foot were recorded. CT-guided percutaneous laser photocoagulation is an alternative to surgery for the treatment of osteoid osteomas of the hands and feet.     

Role of radionuclide imaging in osteoid osteoma.

Radiophosphate bone scans readily disclosed osteoid osteomas in 20 symptomatic patients, including nine patients whose radiographic findings had been negative. In five of the nine patients adjuvant radiogallium imaging was performed, and four showed a disproportionately low uptake relative to radiophosphate. When this occurs, osteoid osteoma can be distinguished from subacute osteomyelitis, which is particularly helpful if the radiograph is equivocal. Radiophosphate bone imaging's generally accepted excellent sensitivity in disclosing obscure symptom-producing focal bone disorders makes it the screening procedure of choice, especially if osteoid osteoma is considered in the differential diagnosis. Only abnormal areas need to be radiographed to add specificity and more precise delineation.     

Radiofrequency ablation under 3D intraoperative Iso-C C-arm navigation for the treatment of osteoid osteomas

Objective:

To evaluate the efficacy of intraoperative three-dimensional (3D) Iso-C C-arm-navigated percutaneous radiofrequency ablation (RFA) of osteoid osteomas.

Methods:

35 patients (20 males and 15 females) with osteoid osteomas underwent treatment with intraoperative 3D Iso-C C-arm navigation-guided RFA. The tumour was first biopsied for pathological examination, the core needle was removed and the RFA needle was inserted into the nidus. Post-operative X-rays and CT scans were performed to evaluate the degree of ablation and to assess for recurrence at 3-month follow-up. Patients also completed a visual analogue scale (VAS) both pre-operatively and 3 days post-operatively to subjectively assess pain.

Results:

Pathological diagnosis confirmed osteoid osteoma in 19 cases. The other 16 cases were not pathologically diagnosed owing to inadequate biopsy specimens. In all cases, localized pain was immediately relieved following RFA. Patients reported significantly decreased pain, with mean pre-operative VAS scores of 3.4 reducing to 0.80 at 3 days post-operatively and further to 0.06 at 3-month follow-up (p < 0.05). The mean follow-up time was 15.5 months (range: 3–38 months).

Conclusion:

3D Iso-C C-arm navigation-guided RFA is a safe and effective option for the treatment of osteoid osteomas and may be considered in place of intraoperative CT-guided and open resection.

Advances in knowledge:

C-arm image-guided percutaneous RFA mitigates the need for pre-operative CT as well as intraoperative scintigraphy, provides real-time imaging of the anatomy, facilitates accurate resection of the tumour and enables immediate confirmation of excision.     

Benign bone-forming lesions: osteoma,osteoid osteoma,and osteoblastoma

The benign bone lesions — osteoma, osteoid osteoma, and osteoblastoma — are characterized as bone-forming because tumor cells produce osteoid or mature bone. Osteoma is a slow-growing lesion most commonly seen in the paranasal sinuses and in the calvaria. When it occurs in the long bones, it is invariably juxtacortical and may need to be differentiated from, among others, parosteal osteosarcoma, sessile osteochondroma, and a matured juxtacortical focus of myositis ossificans. Osteoid osteoma and osteoblastoma appear histologically very similar. Their clinical presentations and distribution in the skeleton, however, are distinct: osteoid osteoma is usually accompanied by nocturnal pain promptly relieved by salicylates; osteoblastoma arises predominantly in the axial skeleton, spinal lesions constituting one-third of reported cases. This review focuses on the application of the various imaging modalities in the diagnosis, differential diagnosis, and evaluation of these lesions. Their histopathology also is discussed, and their treatment briefly outlined.     

Arthroscopic removal of juxtaarticular osteoid osteoma of the elbow

A case of a 42-year-old male patient with symptomatic juxtaarticular osteoid osteoma of the capitulum humeri is presented. After the clinical diagnosis was confirmed with plain radiographs, bone scan, computer tomography and magnetic resonance imaging, the patient underwent arthroscopic removal of the lesion. A partial synoviectomy was performed first and then the center of the lesion was marked with Kirschner wire using the X-ray monitoring. The marked lesion was transarticularly removed with a motorized shaver device. Post-operatively, the patient reported prompt relief of pain that had not reoccurred during 1 year of follow up. To the authors’ knowledge, this is the first report of the arthroscopic removal of juxtaarticular osteoid osteoma of the humeral capitulum which promises to be an effective and less invasive alternative to the existing treatment options.     

Bone scintigraphy as a guide to the diagnosis of osteoid osteoma.

This report describes one case in which bone scintigraphy was helpful in establishing the diagnosis of osteoid osteoma and presents three other cases in which increased accumulation of 99mmTc-EHDP was found at the side of the osteoid osteoma. The study contributes to the observation by others that the osteoid osteoma occurs as a scintigraphic 'hotspot'. It is concluded that the diagnostic delay of the osteoid osteoma can be shortened when bone scintigraphy is performed more often and at an earlier stage in patients with unexplained bone pain or with a clinical history that leads to the suspicion of the presence of an osteoid osteoma.