Ectopic Intrathoracic Kidney due to Diaphragmatic Eventration Detected on Bone Scan

Warda Ahmad; Nayyar Rubab; Farkhanda Gillani; Muhammad Shahzad Afzal; Muhammad Babar Imran

doi:10.1007/s13139-023-00829-y

Ectopic Intrathoracic Kidney due to Diaphragmatic Eventration Detected on Bone Scan

Nucl Med Mol Imaging. 2024 Apr;58(2):95-96. doi: 10.1007/s13139-023-00829-y. Epub 2023 Nov 22.

Authors

Warda Ahmad¹, Nayyar Rubab¹, Farkhanda Gillani¹, Muhammad Shahzad Afzal¹, Muhammad Babar Imran¹

Affiliation

¹ Department of Nuclear Medicine, Punjab Institute of Nuclear Medicine (PINUM), Faisalabad, Pakistan.

PMID: 38510826
PMCID: PMC10948715 (available on 2025-04-01)
DOI: 10.1007/s13139-023-00829-y

Abstract

The technetium-99m methylene diphosphonate (^99mTc-MDP) whole-body bone scan along with single-photon emission computed tomography (SPECT/CT) can detect challenging soft tissue uptake patterns. We present a case of a 67-year-old female in whom the ^99mTc-MDP scan, performed 3 hours after injection, revealed abnormal soft tissue uptake in the right thoracic region. No functioning right kidney was seen in the right lumbar region. Hybrid SPECT/CT revealed an ectopic right kidney in the subdiaphragmatic location, accompanied by gut loops and eventration of the right-sided diaphragm. This case underscores the value of SPECT/CT in identifying and characterizing unexpected anatomical abnormalities, such as ectopic kidneys.

Keywords: Diaphragmatic eventration; Ectopic kidney; Hybrid SPECT/CT; Whole-body bone scan.