Musculoskeletal ImagingGhost vertebra
a form of
bone within bone appearance that may be seen in children who have received injections of the contrast agent thorium dioxide in dextran (Thorotrast). This agent causes temporary growth arrest, and the size of the ghost vertebra corresponds to the size it was at the time of injection. Radiographically, discrete linear bands are observed beneath the cortical bone, caused by formation of an inner layer of new bone in the cortex that does not
merge with the overlying cortical bone.
DR