Clinical nuclear medicine
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Clinical nuclear medicine · Apr 2012
Case ReportsSPECT/CT in differentiation of pseudarthrosis from other causes of back pain in lumbar spinal fusion: report on 10 consecutive cases.
SPECT fused with computed tomography (CT) provides a new approach for more accurate diagnosis of pseudathrosis after spinal fusion procedures. The aim of this study was to compare the findings of SPECT fused with CT (SPECT/CT) with those of CT alone for the diagnosis of pseudarthrosis. ⋯ In the lumbar spine, SPECT/CT seems to increase specificity for detection of nonunion of interbody devices compared with CT alone. It is more sensitive than CT to detect facet joint degeneration, and it can detect screw loosening as well as CT. These findings can be helpful for surgeons in planning appropriate surgical revision strategy.
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Clinical nuclear medicine · Apr 2012
Normal uptake of 68Ga-DOTA-TOC by the pancreas uncinate process mimicking malignancy at somatostatin receptor PET.
To characterize a commonly occurring increased uptake by the uncinate process of the pancreas at PET/CT using 68Ga-DOTA-d-Phe1-Tyr3-octreotide (68Ga-DOTA-TOC). This tracer has replaced In pentetreotide (OctreoScan®) for somatostatin receptor scintigraphy at our laboratory. ⋯ There is a frequent physiological uptake of 68Ga-DOTA-TOC by the pancreas uncinate process. This may be caused by an accumulation of pancreatic polypeptide-containing cells expressing somatostatin receptors. If there is a normal finding at concomitant diagnostic CT, this uptake should be regarded as physiological.
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Clinical nuclear medicine · Mar 2012
Accuracy of central benzodiazepine receptor binding potential/cerebral blood flow SPECT imaging for detecting misery perfusion in patients with unilateral major cerebral artery occlusive diseases: comparison with cerebrovascular reactivity to acetazolamide and cerebral blood flow SPECT imaging.
The aim of the present study was to determine whether central benzodiazepine receptor binding potential (BRBP)/cerebral blood flow (CBF) or a combination of CBF and cerebrovascular reactivity (CVR) to acetazolamide on single-photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) more accurately detects misery perfusion, indicating elevation of absolute value of oxygen extraction fraction (OEF) on positron emission tomography (PET), in patients with unilateral major cerebral artery occlusive diseases. ⋯ The accuracy of central BRBP/CBF asymmetry on SPECT is equivalent to that of the combination of CBF and CVR to acetazolamide on SPECT for detecting misery perfusion in patients with unilateral major cerebral artery occlusive disease.
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Clinical nuclear medicine · Mar 2012
Estimation of ¹²³I-IMP arterial blood activity using ¹²³I-IMP acquisition data from the lungs and brain without any blood sampling: validation of its usefulness for quantification of regional cerebral blood flow.
The conventional methods for the estimation of regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF) using ¹²³I-labeled N-isopropyl-p-iodoamphetamine (¹²³I IMP) autoradiography (ARG) require continuous or 1-point arterial blood sampling. Patients who need rCBF quantification benefit from the avoidance of arterial puncture. In this study, we attempted to develop a method without any blood sampling to estimate ¹²³I IMP activity in the arterial blood sample at 10 minutes after injection of ¹²³I IMP (Ca10) for the purpose of rCBF quantification. For the evaluation of validity of this method, the mean of rCBFs in various regions of the brain (mean CBF) calculated by ¹²³I IMP ARG method using the estimated Ca10 was compared with that calculated using the Ca10 directly measured with the actual arterial blood sample. Both groups of the mean CBF values were also compared with those measured by O-15 H₂O PET ARG method. ⋯ The ¹²³I IMP arterial blood activity can be estimated reliably without any blood sampling using the ¹²³I IMP acquisition data from the lungs and brain. This method can serve for a convenient and noninvasive rCBF quantification technique instead of the conventional methods requiring arterial blood sampling.