Lucent/lytic bone lesion - differential diagnosis (mnemonic)

Changed by Nithin Theckumparampil, 1 Jul 2020

Updates to Article Attributes

Body was changed:

Mnemonics for the differential diagnosis of lucent/lytic bone lesions include:

  • FEGNOMASHIC
  • FOG MACHINES

They are anagrams of each other and therefore include the same components. They are by no means exhaustive lists, but are a good start for remembering a differential for a lucent/lytic bone lesion and will suffice for >95% of the time 1.

Mnemonics

FEGNOMASHIC
FOG MACHINES
  • F: fibrous dysplasia (FD) or fibrous cortical defect (FCD)
  • O: osteoblastoma
  • G: giant cell tumour (GCT) or geode
  • M: metastasis(es)/myeloma
  • A: aneurysmal bone cyst (ABC)
  • C: chondroblastoma or chondromyxoid fibroma
  • H: hyperparathyroidism (brown tumour)
  • I: infection (osteomyelitis) or infarction (bone infarction)
  • N: non-ossifying fibroma (NOF)
  • E: enchondroma or eosinophilic granuloma (EG)
  • S: simple (unicameral) bone cyst

These lists are not exhaustive (e.g. intraosseous lipoma is omitted)

Related articles

  • -<li><a href="/articles/lodwick-classification-of-lytic-bone-lesions">Lodwick classification</a></li>
  • +<li><p>Bone lesion description (mnemonic)</p></li>
  • +<li><p><a href="/articles/lodwick-classification-of-lytic-bone-lesions">Lodwick classification</a></p></li>

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