Tailbone CT scan | Tailbone Doctor

Tailbone Anatomy and Imaging Questions-Answers on Facebook Live, with Jason Woon PhD and Patrick Foye MD, on Tailbone Pain, Coccyx Pain

On February 21, 2019, there was a Live Question-and-Answer session for more than an hour on the Tailbone Pain Center’s Facebook page.

People from around the world asked questions about coccyx pain (tailbone pain, […]

Nuclear Medicine Bone Scans, but NOT DEXA Scans, for Coccyx Pain, Tailbone Pain

Regarding “Bone Scans” for Tailbone Pain, Coccyx Pain… Someone recently asked me to explain the difference between a DEXA Scan and a Nuclear Medicine Bone Scan. DEXA: A dual energy X-ray absorptiometry (DEXA) scan, also called a bone density scan, is a common technique used to measure bone density. This test is basically done to […]

3-D, 3-dimensional CT scan for Tailbone Pain, Coccyx Pain

Medical imaging studies for Tailbone Pain Medical imaging studies can be very helpful in making an accurate diagnosis in patients with coccyx pain (also called coccydynia, or tailbone pain). The most common medical imaging studies for tailbone pain include: X-rays: especially “sitting-versus-standing” x-rays to look for “dynamic instability” ( unstable joints of the coccyx). MRI: […]

How Big is that Coccyx Mass, Cyst, Tumor, or Cancer?

Sometimes I find that my patients with tailbone pain (coccyx pain, coccydynia) actually have a mass, cyst, tumor, or cancer either within the tailbone itself or in the nearby tissues. Examples can include pilonidal cyst, retro-rectal hamartoma (tailgut cyst), chordoma (a type of bone cancer that tends to happen at the coccyx and is […]

Sit-Stand Coccyx / Tailbone X-rays After Coccygectomy?

I was recently asked: Do I order sitting-versus-standing coccyx x-rays for patients who have persistent pain after coccygectomy (surgical removal of the coccyx/tailbone).

MY RESPONSE:

1) First of all, do we know for sure whether the ENTIRE tailbone has indeed been surgically removed?

If we know for sure that the entire tailbone has been […]

Tailbone MRI Versus CT scan for Coccyx Pain

Which is better when evaluating tailbone pain (coccyx pain), an MRI or a CT scan? CT scan can be very good at showing bone, but MRI can show not only bone but ALSO give good definition of soft tissue structures. Some of the soft tissue structures that show up clearly on MRI include: abscess (which […]

Tailbone MRI, CT, X-rays: sitting versus lying down

Typical MRI and CT scans are normally done in a horizontal position (while you are lying down).

These tests can provide helpful information, BUT in MANY cases the tailbone will look normal while someone is lying down but will be clearly abnormal/dislocated while the person is sitting with her body weight onto the tailbone.

MRI […]

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