Assessment of aortitis by semiquantitative analysis of 180-min super(18)F-FDG PET/CT acquisition images

Purpose: The aim of this study was to evaluate the contribution of semiquantitative analysis of 180-min super(18)F-fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) positron emission tomography (PET)/CT images for the assessment of aortitis in cases of suspected large vessel vasculitis (LVV) and to establish a threshold index for application in the clinical setting. Methods: This prospective study included 43 patients (mean age 67.5 plus or minus 12.9years) with suspicion of LVV (25 with a final diagnosis of aortitis). super(18)F-FDG PET/CT scan was acquired 180 min after injection of 7 MBq/kg of super(18)F-FDG. A semiquantitative analysis was performed calculating the aortic wall maximum standardized uptake value (SUV sub(max)) (T), the lumen SUV sub(max) (B) and the target to background ratio (TBR). These results were also compared with those obtained in a control population. Results: The mean aortic wall SUV sub(max) was 2.00 plus or minus 0.62 for patients with aortitis and 1.45 plus or minus 0.31 for patients without aortitis (p