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226Ra is a natural radioelement emitting α and γ radiations. It can be highly concentrated in TENORM materials from the petroleum or fertilizer industries. In Switzerland, 226Ra is currently a radioactive inheritance problem from the watch industry. Furthermore, 223Ra is a radium isotope used in nuclear medicine to treat bone metastasis. There exist several methods to measure radium using alpha or gamma spectrometry or using 222Rn emanation technique. The limitations of these methods are due to the required detection limits and the nature of the samples. When using alpha spectrometry to reach very low detection limits, critical technical hitches often arise because of the difficulties in separating radium from barium, in removing organics eluted from the separating chromatography column, and in plating radium. Moreover, overall chemical recovery of radium is often not reproducible, depending on the studies. Here we propose a method that separates radium from other alkaline-earth cations using cation exchange chromatography and selective complex formation by EDTA and DCTA. Radium is completely free of the 229Th tracer and its daughter products, particularly 225Ac. Organics from the column are removed in a further purification step so that radium can be plated with acceptable yields in a HCl/HNO3/ethanol solution. We successfully applied the method to soil, water, urine and human bone samples and further extended it to the determination of 223Ra in a bone biopsy, using 226Ra as an internal tracer.

A 23-year-old African native male patient presented with fever, lumbalgia and dysuria after returning from a trip to Togo. His physical examination revealed pain over the pubic symphysis and rectal tenderness on digital exam. The C-reactive protein (CRP) level was elevated along with positive blood and urinary cultures for methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus. An magnetic resonance imaging that has been performed to rule out arthritis/osteomyelitis in the pubis revealed edema of the symphysis. An 18F-FDG positron emission tomography/computed tomography supported the diagnosis of prostate infection and showed a focal uptake of the pubic symphysis, with diffuse hyper-metabolism of the insertions of the rectus abdominis and longus adductor muscles, corresponding to athletic pubalgia. Fever and CRP responded rapidly to antibiotherapy.

Purpose. The use of SPECT/CT in bone scans has been widespread in recent years, but there are no specific guidelines concerning the optimal acquisition protocol. Two strategies have been proposed: targeted SPECT/CT for equivocal lesions detected on planar images or systematic whole-body SPECT/CT. Our aim was to compare the diagnostic accuracy of the two approaches. Methods. 212 consecutive patients with a history of cancer were referred for bone scans to detect bone metastases. Two experienced readers randomly evaluated for each patient either planar images with one-field SPECT/CT targeted on equivocal focal uptakes (targeted SPECT/CT) or a whole-body (two-field) SPECT/CT acquisition from the base of the skull to the proximal femurs (whole-body SPECT/CT). The exams were categorized as “nonmetastatic,” “equivocal,” or “metastatic” on both protocols. The presence or absence of any extra-axial skeletal lesions was also assessed. The sensitivity and specificity of both strategies were measured using the results of subsequent imaging follow-up as the reference standard. Results. Whole-body SPECT/CT had a significantly higher sensitivity than targeted SPECT/CT to detect bone metastases (p=0.0297) and to detect extra-axial metastases (p=0.0266). There was no significant difference in specificity among the two approaches. Conclusion. Whole-body SPECT/CT is the optimal modality of choice for metastatic workup, including detection of extra-axial lesions, with improved sensitivity and similar specificity compared to targeted SPECT/CT.

A 23-year-old African native male patient presented with fever, lumbalgia and dysuria after returning from a trip to Togo. His physical examination revealed pain over the pubic symphysis and rectal tenderness on digital exam. The C-reactive protein (CRP) level was elevated along with positive blood and urinary cultures for methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus. An magnetic resonance imaging that has been performed to rule out arthritis/osteomyelitis in the pubis revealed edema of the symphysis. An 18F-FDG positron emission tomography/computed tomography supported the diagnosis of prostate infection and showed a focal uptake of the pubic symphysis, with diffuse hyper-metabolism of the insertions of the rectus abdominis and longus adductor muscles, corresponding to athletic pubalgia. Fever and CRP responded rapidly to antibiotherapy.

Sparse information is available on the role of cardiac viability imaging in elderly patients. We aimed at evaluating the prognostic value of FDG-PET/CT in elderly patients with stable coronary artery disease (CAD) and reduced left ventricular ejection fraction (rLVEF) before revascularisation. Elderly patients (> 65 years old, mean 74 ± 7 years old) with CAD and rLVEF were followed after cardiac FDG-PET/CT and stratified according to presence/absence of viable myocardium and subsequent revascularisation. Fatal events of any cause as well as hospitalisations related to acute cardiac conditions were reported as clinical end-points. Predictors of fatal events in patients with viable myocardium (> 1 myocardium segment/20) were analysed. A total of 89 patients were followed (64 viable myocardia; 37 and 27 patients with and without subsequent revascularisation, respectively). The change in LVEF during follow-up (2.1 ± 1.6 years) was 3.8 ± 6.6% (P = 0.013) and − 0.75 ± 2.6% (P = 0.170) in patients with and without revascularisation, respectively. Log-rank (P = 0.037) and multivariate analysis (Wald: 6.305, P = 0.012) showed viable myocardium to be significantly associated with fatal events if not revascularised. Elderly patients with viable myocardium might potentially benefit from revascularisation procedures as improved left ventricular ejection fraction and survival were observed in our retrospective study as compared to patients in whom a revascularisation procedure was denied. Viable myocardium as detected by cardiac FDG PET/CT was associated with better clinical outcomes in elderly patients when revascularised.

Asymptomatic spontaneous nephrocutaneous fistula is a rare and severe complication of chronic urolithiasis. We report a case of 56-year-old woman with a nephrocutaneous fistula (NFC) which developed from a superinfected urinoma following calyceal rupture due to an obstructing calculus in the left ureter. The patient was clinically asymptomatic and came to the emergency department for a painless left flank fluctuating mass. This urinoma was superinfected, with a delayed development of renal abscesses and perirenal phlegmon found on contrast-enhanced uro-computed tomography (CT), responsible for left renal vein thrombophlebitis and left psoas abscess. Thereafter, a 99 mTc dimercaptosuccinic acid (DMSA) scintigraphy revealed a nonfunctional left kidney, leading to the decision of left nephrectomy. Chronic urolithiasis complications are rare and only few cases are reported in medical literature. A systematic medical approach helped selecting the best imaging modality to help diagnosis and treatment. Indeed, uro-CT scan and renal scintigraphy with 99 mTc-DMSA are the most sensitive imaging modalities to investigate morphological and functional urinary tract consequences of NFC, secondary to chronic urolithiasis.

We present the case of a 45-year-old woman with a history of multiple back surgeries to illustrate the feasibility of combining CT myelography (myeloCT) and 99mTc-HDP SPECT/CT bone scan in a 1-step procedure to realize a combined SPECT-myeloCT. Myelography CT and SPECT/CT were required to assess nerve root compression and pseudarthrosis, respectively. The proposed combined acquisition protocol provides information about nervous compression as well as pseudarthrosis in a 1 examination, optimizing radiation dose and patient comfort.

SummaryAim: To assess the frequency and the significance of incidental pulmonary lesions with 18F-fluorocholine (18F-FCH) PET/CT in prostate cancer (PCa) patients. Patients, methods: 225 consecutive PCa patients referred for 18F-FCH PET/CT (median age 68 years) were retrospectively evaluated for the presence of lesions in the lungs: 173 referred for restaging and 52 for initial staging regarding their high risk of extra prostatic extension. The final diagnosis was based on histopathological or on clinical and radiological follow-up. Results: 13 patients had 18F-FCH positive pulmonary and 8 patients malignant lesions: 5 patients (38%) had a primary lung cancer (2 squamous cell carcinomas, 1 papillary adenocarcinoma, 1 typical pulmonary carcinoid, 1 bronchioloalveolar carcinoma) and 3 patients (23%) PCa metastases. Benign lesions were found in 5 subjects (38%). SUVmax and maximum diameter were neither significantly different in primary and metastatic tumors nor between malignant and benign lesions. Conclusions: Although our results suggest that incidental uptake in the lungs in PCa patients are nonspecific, their detection may have a significant impact on patient management knowing that more than 60% represent malignant diseas.

Summary Objective The purpose of this study was to assess the performance of 18 F-FDG hybrid PET/MRI to detect and localise the presence of metabolically active brown adipose tissue (BAT). Methods We retrospectively analyzed 197 consecutive 18 F-flurodeoxyglucose ( 18 F-FDG) positron-emission tomographic (PET) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) images performed with a hybrid whole-body PET–MRI tomography in 192 patients. These patients were originally investigated mainly for oncological staging, in the absence of a cooling protocol. The presence of BAT was defined as a soft tissue structure that was larger than 4mm in diameter, had the characteristics of fat tissue on MRI and had a maximal standardised uptake value (SUV) of 18 F-FDG of at least 2.0. No specific MRI sequences for BAT detection were acquired. Results PET/MRI identified the presence of metabolically active BAT in 5 out of 192 patients (2.6%). BAT positive subjects were all female, significantly younger and with significantly lower body weight than BAT negative subjects. Conclusions Whole body hybrid PET/MRI allowed for the identification of BAT, with a low prevalence, comparable to previous retrospective PET/CT studies realised in the absence of a cooling protocol. The main advantages of the PET/MRI hybrid technique, as compared with PET/CT, includes a lower radiation burden, and the possibility to combine a multiparameter fat characterization by dedicated MRI sequences. Hybrid PET/MRI might represent the ideal tool for BAT evaluation.

Breast cancer is an international public health concern in which an optimal treatment plan requires a precise staging. Both MRI and PET imaging techniques have made significant progress in the last decades with constant improvements that made both modalities clinically relevant in several stages of breast cancer management and follow-up. On one hand, specific breast MRI permits high diagnostic accuracy for local tumor staging, and whole-body MRI can also be of great use in distant staging, eventually accompanied by organ-specific MRI sequences. Moreover, many different MRI sequences can be performed, including functional MRI, letting us foresee important improvements in breast cancer characterization in the future. On the contrary, 18F-FDG-PET has a high diagnostic performance for the detection of distant metastases, and several other tracers currently under development may profoundly affect breast cancer management in the future with better determination of different types of breast cancers allowing personalized treatments. As a consequence PET/MR is a promising emerging technology, and it is foreseeable that in cases where both PET and MRI data are needed, a hybrid acquisition is justified when available. However, at this stage of deployment of such hybrid scanners in a clinical setting, more data are needed to demonstrate their added value beyond just patient comfort of having to undergo a single examination instead of two, and the higher confidence of diagnostic interpretation of these co-registered images. Optimized imaging protocols are still being developed and are prone to provide more efficient hybrid protocols with a potential improvement in diagnostic accuracy. More convincing studies with larger number of patients as well as cost-effectiveness studies are needed. This article provides insights into the current state-of-the-art of PET/MR in patients with breast cancer and gives an outlook on future developments of both imaging techniques and potential applications in the future. Semin Nucl Med 45:304-321

We report the case of a 56-year-old male with bilateral total knee prostheses suffering from bilateral knee pain mainly on the right side and referred for bone scintigraphy. The medical history of the patient revealed an opening wedge high tibial osteotomy performed nine years earlier, with insertion of two blocks of ceramic made of hydroxyapatite and tricalcium phosphate in a wedge configuration as synthetic bone substitutes. The porous structure of these implants is analogous to the architecture of cancellous bone and permits fibrovascular and bone ingrowth, promoting the healing process. Planar scintigraphy and SPECT/CT showed an intense uptake within those implants in the early phase as well as in the late phase of the bone scan. It also showed bilateral patellofemoral arthritis. A (99m)Tc-labeled antigranulocyte antibody scintigraphy was negative for infection or inflammation. Bilateral patellar resurfacing led to complete symptom regression, confirmed at 10 months follow-up. To the best of our knowledge, this scintigraphic pattern with such a high tracer uptake reflecting bone substitute osteointegration has not yet been published. This should be considered in patients with such bone replacement materials that are increasingly used, in order to avoid false diagnosis of inflammation or infection.

A 43-year-old drug addicted female was referred for a L5-S1 posterolateral in situ fixation with autologous graft because of an L5/S1 severe discopathy with listhesis. After six months, low back pain recurred. A Tc-99m HDP SPECT-CT diagnosed a pseudarthrosis with intense uptake of the L5-S1 endplates and a fracture of the right S1 screw just outside the metal-bone interface without any uptake or bone resorption around the screw. The absence of uptake around a broken screw is a pitfall that the physician should be aware of.