The diagnostic value of 99m Tc-diphosphonate bone imaging in transient osteoporosis of the hip.

We present topographic and quantitative studies of 99m Tc-diphosphonate bone scans from 46 patients and 25 control subjects in which we found transient osteoporosis of the hip (TOH) (12 cases--2 bilateral), early aseptic osteonecrosis of the femoral head (19 cases--2 bilateral), early coxitis (11 cases), and stress fracture of the femoral neck (4 cases). Active TOH was characterized by intense, homogeneous increased uptake of the entire femoral head, extending to the acetabulum and the neck, and sometimes to the shaft. The scintigram of TOH differed greatly from that in the other hip disorders studied. Bone scintigraphy can help to diagnose the cause of pain in a hip before definite roentgenographic signs appear.