Relevance of F-DOPA visual and semi-quantitative PET metrics for the diagnostic of Parkinson disease in clinical practice: a machine learning-based inference study.

Purpose: To decipher the relevance of visual and semi-quantitative 6-fluoro-(18F)-L-DOPA (F-DOPA) interpretation methods for the diagnostic of idiopathic Parkinson disease (IPD) in hybrid positron emission tomography (PET) and magnetic resonance imaging.

Material And Methods: A total of 110 consecutive patients (48 IPD and 62 controls) with 11 months of median clinical follow-up (reference standard) were included. A composite visual assessment from five independent nuclear imaging readers, together with striatal standard uptake value (SUV) to occipital SUV ratio, striatal gradients and putamen asymmetry-based semi-quantitative PET metrics automatically extracted used to train machine learning models to classify IPD versus controls.

Head-to-Head Comparison Between Rabbit Sign and EANM/SNMMI Criteria for the 18F-DOPA Visual Assessment of Parkinsonian Syndromes in PET/MRI: A Multiple Expert-Based and Blinded Controlled Study.

Purpose: The aim of this study was to compare the diagnostic performance of the rabbit visual pattern versus the one endorsed by the EANM/SNMMI for the diagnosis of parkinsonian syndromes in PET/MRI.

Patients And Methods: The 18F-DOPA PET images of 129 consecutive patients (65 Park+ and 64 controls) with 1 year of clinical follow-up were reviewed independently by 5 experienced readers on the same imaging workstation, blinded to the final clinical diagnosis. Two visual methods were assessed independently, with several days to months of interval: the criteria endorsed by EANM/SNMMI and the "rabbit" shape of the striate assessed on 3D MIP images.

Metabolic connectivity is associated with seizure outcome in surgically treated temporal lobe epilepsies: A F-FDG PET seed correlation analysis.

Unlabelled: F-FDG PET provides high sensitivity for the pre-surgical assessment of drug-resistant temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE). However, little is known about the metabolic connectivity of epileptogenic networks involved. This study therefore aimed to evaluate the association between metabolic connectivity and seizure outcome in surgically treated TLE.

Assessment of the routine reporting of very low-dose exercise-first myocardial perfusion SPECT from a large-scale real-world cohort and correlation with the subsequent reporting of coronary stenosis at angiography.

Purpose: Our study assesses the routine reporting of exercise ischemia using very low-dose exercise-first myocardial perfusion SPECT in a large number of patients and under real-life conditions, by evaluating correlations with the subsequent routine reporting of coronary stenosis by angiography and with factors that predict ischemia.

Methods: Data from 13,126 routine exercise MPI reports, from 11,952 patients (31% women), using very low doses of sestamibi and a high-sensitivity cardiac CZT camera, were extracted to assess the reporting of significant MPI-ischemia (> 1 left ventricular segment), to determine the MPI normalcy rate in a group with < 5% pretest probability of coronary artery disease (CAD) (n = 378), and to assess the ability of MPI to predict a > 50% coronary stenosis in patients with available coronary angiography reports in the 3 months after the MPI (n = 713).

Results: The median effective patient dose was 2.

Bone Scintigraphy of Vertebral Fractures With a Whole-Body CZT Camera in a PET-Like Utilization.

An image display with a standardized uptake value (SUV) scale is recommended for analyzing PET exams, thus requiring the reconstruction of accurate images for both SUV measurement and visual analysis. This study aimed to determine whether such images may also be obtained with a high-speed CZT-SPECT/CT system, with a further application for the longitudinal monitoring of vertebral fractures. SPECT image reconstruction was optimized with an IEC phantom according to both image quality parameters and accuracy of measured activity.

F-FDOPA PET for the Noninvasive Prediction of Glioma Molecular Parameters: A Radiomics Study.

The assessment of gliomas by F-FDOPA PET imaging as an adjunct to MRI showed high performance by combining static and dynamic features to noninvasively predict the isocitrate dehydrogenase (IDH) mutations and the 1p/19q codeletion, which the World Health Organization classified as significant parameters in 2016. The current study evaluated whether other F-FDOPA PET radiomics features further improve performance and the contributions of each of these features to performance. Our study included 72 retrospectively selected, newly diagnosed glioma patients with F-FDOPA PET dynamic acquisitions.

Brain F-FDG PET for the diagnosis of autoimmune encephalitis: a systematic review and a meta-analysis.

Objective: To consolidate current understanding of detection sensitivity of brain F-FDG PET scans in the diagnosis of autoimmune encephalitis and to define specific metabolic imaging patterns for the most frequently occurring autoantibodies.

Methods: A systematic and exhaustive search of data available in the literature was performed by querying the PubMed/MEDLINE and Cochrane databases for the search terms: ((PET) OR (positron emission tomography)) AND ((FDG) OR (fluorodeoxyglucose)) AND ((encephalitis) OR (brain inflammation)). Studies had to satisfy the following criteria: (i) include at least ten pediatric or adult patients suspected or diagnosed with autoimmune encephalitis according to the current recommendations, (ii) specifically present F-FDG PET and/or morphologic imaging findings.

High-quality brain perfusion SPECT images may be achieved with a high-speed recording using 360° CZT camera.

Objective: The aim of this study was to compare brain perfusion SPECT obtained from a 360° CZT and a conventional Anger camera.

Methods: The 360° CZT camera utilizing a brain configuration, with 12 detectors surrounding the head, was compared to a 2-head Anger camera for count sensitivity and image quality on 30-min SPECT recordings from a brain phantom and from Tc-HMPAO brain perfusion in 2 groups of 21 patients investigated with the CZT and Anger cameras, respectively. Image reconstruction was adjusted according to image contrast for each camera.

From metabolic connectivity to molecular connectivity: application to dopaminergic pathways.

Introduction: This study aims to reveal the feasibility and potential of molecular connectivity based on neurotransmission in comparison with the metabolic connectivity with an application to dopaminergic pathways. For this purpose, we propose to compare the neurotransmission connectivity findings using I-FP-CIT SPECT and F-FDOPA PET with the metabolic connectivity findings using F-FDG PET.

Methods: F-FDG PET and I-FP-CIT SPECT images from 47 subjects and F-FDOPA PET images from 177 subjects, who had no neurological or psychiatric disorders, were studied.

Predicting the need for a reduced drug dose, at first prescription.

Prescribing the right drug with the right dose is a central tenet of precision medicine. We examined the use of patients' prior Electronic Health Records to predict a reduction in drug dosage. We focus on drugs that interact with the P450 enzyme family, because their dosage is known to be sensitive and variable.

Scapholunate instability: improved detection with semi-automated kinematic CT analysis during stress maneuvers.

Objectives: To evaluate the diagnostic performance of radioulnar deviation (RUD) and clenching fist (CF) maneuvers for the evaluation of scapholunate dissociation (SLD) using quantitative kinematic CT.

Methods: Thirty-seven patients with suspected scapholunate instability were prospectively evaluated with kinematic CT. Two radiologists independently evaluated the SLD during RUD and CF maneuvers.

Brain PET substrate of impulse control disorders in Parkinson's disease: A metabolic connectivity study.

Impulse control disorders (ICDs) have received increased attention in Parkinson's disease (PD) because of potentially dramatic consequences. Their physiopathology, however, remains incompletely understood. An overstimulation of the mesocorticolimbic system has been reported, while a larger network has recently been suggested.

Cross-sectional variations of white and grey matter in older hypertensive patients with subjective memory complaints.

Mild cognitive impairment and Alzheimer's dementia involve a grey matter disease, quantifiable by F-Fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography (FDG-PET), but also white matter damage, evidenced by diffusion tensor magnetic resonance imaging (DTI), which may play an additional pathogenic role. This study aimed to determine whether such DTI and PET variations are also interrelated in a high-risk population of older hypertensive patients with only subjective memory complaints (SMC). Sixty older hypertensive patients (75 ± 5 years) with SMC were referred to DTI and FDG-PET brain imaging, executive and memory tests, as well as peripheral and central blood pressure (BP) measurements.

A high F-FDOPA uptake is associated with a slow growth rate in diffuse Grade II-III gliomas.

Objective: In diffuse Grade II-III gliomas, a high 3,4-dihydroxy-6-(F)-fluoro-L-phenylalanine (F-FDOPA) positron emission tomography (PET) uptake, with a standardized uptake value (SUV)/contralateral brain tissue ratio greater than 1.8, was previously found to be consistently associated with the presence of an isocitrate dehydrogenase (IDH) mutation, whereas this mutation is typically associated with a better prognosis. This pilot study was aimed to ascertain the prognostic value of this high F-FDOPA uptake in diffuse Grade II-III gliomas with regard to the velocity of diameter expansion (VDE), which represents an established landmark of better prognosis when below 4 mm per year.

Per-Arnt-Sim kinase regulates pancreatic duodenal homeobox-1 protein stability via phosphorylation of glycogen synthase kinase 3β in pancreatic β-cells.

In pancreatic β-cells, glucose induces the binding of the transcription factor pancreatic duodenal homeobox-1 (PDX-1) to the insulin gene promoter to activate insulin gene transcription. At low glucose levels, glycogen synthase kinase 3β (GSK3β) is known to phosphorylate PDX-1 on C-terminal serine residues, which triggers PDX-1 proteasomal degradation. We previously showed that the serine/threonine Per-Arnt-Sim domain-containing kinase (PASK) regulates insulin gene transcription via PDX-1.