Detection of an artifact on lumbar SPECT.

SPECT imaging plays an important role in the practice of nuclear medicine, because it provides a three-dimensional perspective, which improves the practitioner's ability to detect lesions. However, recognition of artifacts is critical to achieve the diagnostic advantages this technique provides. A patient underwent a three-phase Tc-99m MDP bone scan. Reconstructed SPECT images of the lumbar spine revealed a photopenic artifact at the level of L1-L2 that resolved completely when the SPECT was repeated 2 hours later. These findings indicate that renal activity can appear as a photopenic artifact on lumbar SPECT images.