Sacral Stress Fractures in Long-Distance Runners

Abstract

The clinical presentation of runners with sacral stress fractures can mimic disk disease. However, stress fractures in athletes, especially long-distance runners, must be treated differently. The imaging characteristics appear as linear abnormal signal intensity paralleling the sacroiliac joint on MR imaging and linear sclerosis with cortical disruption on CT. Imaging with bone scintigraphy shows increased uptake that parallels the sacroiliac joint.