A simple method to detect human intraosseous vascular structures: using the calcaneus as an example.

BACKGROUND: Intraosseous vessels play an important role in regeneration of bone. However, the anatomy of the intraosseous vessels in humans has not been clearly delineated due to inadequate method of stereoscopically investigating vessels surrounded by bone tissues.
PURPOSE: This study was to investigate the feasibility of simple CT scanning with barium sulphate perfusion to detect intraosseous vessels in humans.
METHODS: Two freshly obtained feet from a patient who required a double amputation were used in this study. One foot was perfused with barium sulfate and then scanned by CT (CT method). The other foot was processed using vascular corrosion casting (traditional method). Intraosseous vessels in both specimens were compared.
RESULTS: The anatomical distributions of the calcaneal intraosseous vessels were similar as assessed by the CT and traditional methods. However, in comparison to traditional method, the CT method allows the preservation of the surrounding bone tissue, which is important for analyzing the relationship between intraosseous vessels and the surrounding bone structures, and the visualization of a special vascular structure called the sinusoid cluster.
CONCLUSION: Simple CT scanning with barium sulfate perfusion may be a practical and adequate method for stereoscopically detecting the morphology and distribution of the intraosseous vessels.