• Giorgio Treglia, Silvia Taralli, Maria Lucia Calcagni, Fabio Maggi, Alessandro Giordano, and Lorenzo Bonomo.
• Nuclear Medicine Unit, Department of Bioimaging and Radiological Sciences, Catholic University of Sacred Heart, Rome, Italy. giorgiomednuc@libero.it
• J Comput Assist Tomogr. 2011 May 1; 35 (3): 387-93.

ObjectiveThis study was designed to review the emerging role of fluorine 18 fluorodeoxyglucose (¹⁸F-FDG)-positron emission tomography (PET) CT/computed tomography (PET/CT) in patients with mycobacteriosis.MethodsA comprehensive literature search of published studies through October 2010 in PubMed/MEDLINE database regarding ¹⁸F-FDG-PET and PET/CT in patients with mycobacteriosis was performed.ResultsUltimately, we identified 16 studies comprising a total of 220 patients with mycobacteriosis. Main findings of the included studies are presented.Conclusions(1) Mycobacteriosis commonly causes increased ¹⁸F-FDG uptake; therefore, positive ¹⁸F-FDG-PET results should be interpreted with caution in differentiating benign from malignant abnormalities. (2) ¹⁸F-FDG-PET and PET/CT are potentially useful in detecting sites of Mycobacterium infection. (3) Dual-phase ¹⁸F-FDG-PET is not useful for the differential diagnosis between malignant lesions and sites of Mycobacterium infection. (4) ¹⁸F-FDG-PET and PET/CT are useful for the evaluation of disease activity and in monitoring response to therapy in patients with mycobacteriosis. (5) Dual-tracer PET and PET/CT are potentially useful for presumptive diagnosis of solitary pulmonary nodules.

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