Impact of Tracer Retention Levels on Visual Analysis of Cerebral [F]- Florbetaben Pet Images.

Background: To compare visual and semi-quantitative analysis of brain [F]Florbetaben PET images in Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI) patients and relate this finding to the degree of ß-amyloid burden.

Methods: A sample of 71 amnestic MCI patients (age 74 ± 7.3 years, Mini Mental State Examination 24.

Toward the Discovery and Development of PSMA Targeted Inhibitors for Nuclear Medicine Applications.

Background: The rising incidence rate of prostate cancer (PCa) has promoted the development of new diagnostic and therapeutic radiopharmaceuticals during the last decades. Promising improvements have been achieved in clinical practice using prostate specific membrane antigen (PSMA) labeled agents, including specific antibodies and small molecular weight inhibitors. Focusing on molecular docking studies, this review aims to highlight the progress in the design of PSMA targeted agents for a potential use in nuclear medicine.

Longitudinal cognitive decline in mild cognitive impairment subjects with early amyloid-β neocortical deposition.

Purpose: The rate of clinical progression of cognitive impairment in subjects with early amyloid deposition is unknown. The primary aim of the study was to follow the rate of cognitive decline over 1 year in patients with amnestic mild cognitive impairment (aMCI) by determining amyloid retention levels in terms of standardized uptake value ratios (SUVr) that ranged from 0.85 to 1.

The brain cognitive reserve hypothesis: A review with emphasis on the contribution of nuclear medicine neuroimaging techniques.

Neuropathological and clinical evidence indicates that the clinical expression of Alzheimer's disease (AD) occurs as neuropathology exceeds the brain reserve capacity. The brain or cognitive reserve (BCR) hypothesis states that high premorbid intelligence, education, and an active and stimulating lifestyle provide reserve capacity, which acts as a buffer against the cognitive deficits due to accumulating neuropathology. Neuroimaging studies that assessed the BCR hypothesis are critically reviewed with emphasis on study design and statistical analysis.

[Ga]-Dota Peptide PET/CT in Neuroendocrine Tumors: Main Clinical Applications.

Objective: Neuroendocrine Neoplasms (NENs) are generally defined as rare and heterogeneous tumors. The gastrointestinal system is the most frequent site of NENs localization, however they can be found in other anatomical regions, such as pancreas, lungs, ovaries, thyroid, pituitary, and adrenal glands. Neuroendocrine neoplasms have significant clinical manifestations depending on the production of active peptide.

Sensitivity of fluorine-18-fluoromethylcholine PET/CT to prostate-specific antigen over different plasma levels: a retrospective study in a cohort of 192 patients with prostate cancer.

Purpose: Several factors have been identified that predict positive fluorine-18-fluoromethylcholine (F-FCH) PET/CT result in patients with prostate cancer undergoing PET/CT for biochemical failure. Among these factors, prostate-specific antigen (PSA) is the single factor most consistently associated with the prediction of positive F-FCH PET/CT. In this study, we wished to confirm this finding and expand it in a large series of patients.

Sentinel Lymph Node Biopsy in Cutaneous Melanoma: Standard and New Technical Procedures and Clinical Advances. A Systematic Review of the Literature.

Melanoma is an important public health problem, and its incidence is increasing worldwide. The disease status of regional lymph nodes is the most important prognostic factor in early-stage melanoma patients. Sentinel lymph node biopsy (SLNB) was introduced in the early 1990s as a less invasive procedure than complete lymph node dissection to allow histopathologic evaluation of the "sentinel lymph node" (SLN), which is the first node along the lymphatic pathway from a primary tumor.

Metabolic and Hormonal Determinants of Glomerular Filtration Rate and Renal Hemodynamics in Severely Obese Individuals.

Objective: Renal function is often compromised in severe obesity. A true measurement of glomerular filtration rate (GFR) is unusual, and how estimation formulae (EstForm) perform in such individuals is unclear. We characterized renal function and hemodynamics in severely obese individuals, assessing the reliability of EstForm.

Accuracy of myocardial perfusion imaging in detecting multivessel coronary artery disease: A cardiac CZT study.

Background: Myocardial perfusion imaging (MPI) performed on traditional single-photon emission computed-tomography cameras has been shown to have a sub-optimal accuracy in detecting multivessel coronary artery disease (CAD).

Methods: Six-hundred and ninety-five patients were submitted to MPI on a novel cadmium-zinc-telluride (CZT) camera and coronary angiography. A coronary stenosis >70% was considered obstructive.

The Value of Oro-Pharyngo-Esophageal Scintigraphy in the Management of Patients with Aspiration into the Tracheo-bronchial Tree and Consequent Dysphagia.

Context: Tracheo-bronchial aspiration is the most invalidating condition which can happen to patients affected by dysphagia, especially when caused by central neurologic disorders; the associated pneumonia episodes represent the most frequent cause of death in these patients. Oro-pharyngo-esophageal scintigraphy (OPES) allows both functional imaging and semiquantitative evaluation of the subsequent phases of swallowing.

Case Report: We evaluated by means of OPES a woman who had previously undergone high-dose external beam radiation therapy for a nasopharyngeal carcinoma, which determined tissue fibrosis and progressive dysphagia.

Sentinel Node Mapping in Melanoma of the Back: SPECT/CT Helps Discriminate "True" and "False" in-Transit Lymph Nodes.

A 32-year-old man with melanoma on the right paramedian region of the lower back underwent lymphoscintigraphy for radioguided sentinel node (SN) biopsy. Planar imaging showed the presence of 2 sites of radioactivity accumulation corresponding to an axillary SN and to an "in-transit" SN, located on the right side of the upper trunk. A further "hot spot" placed on the left paramedian region of the lower back was identified by planar lymphoscintigraphy.

Dynamic 3D analysis of myocardial sympathetic innervation: an experimental study using 123I-MIBG and a CZT camera.

Unlabelled: Data on the in vivo myocardial kinetics of (123)I-metaiodobenzylguanidine ((123)I-MIBG) are scarce and have always been obtained using planar acquisitions. To clarify the normal kinetics of (123)I-MIBG in vivo over time, we designed an experimental protocol using a 3-dimensional (3D) dynamic approach with a cadmium zinc telluride (CZT) camera.

Methods: We studied 6 anesthetized pigs (mean body weight, 37 ± 4 kg).

Sentinel lymph node mapping in breast cancer: a critical reappraisal of the internal mammary chain issue.

Although, like the axilla, the internal mammary nodes (IMNs) are a first-echelon nodal drainage site in breast cancer, the importance of their treatment has long been debated. Seminal randomized trials have failed to demonstrate a survival benefit from surgical IMN dissection, and several retrospective studies have shown that IMNs are rarely the first site of recurrence. However, the recent widespread adoption of sentinel lymph node (SLN) biopsy has stimulated a critical reappraisal of such early results.

A critical reappraisal of false negative sentinel lymph node biopsy in melanoma.

Lymphatic mapping and sentinel lymph node biopsy (SLNB) have completely changed the clinical management of cutaneous melanoma. This procedure has been accepted worldwide as a recognized method for nodal staging. SLNB is able to accurately determine nodal basin status, providing the most useful prognostic information.

Sentinel lymph node mapping in melanoma: the issue of false-negative findings.

Management of cutaneous melanoma has changed after introduction in the clinical routine of sentinel lymph node biopsy (SLNB) for nodal staging. By defining the nodal basin status, SLNB provides a powerful prognostic information. Nevertheless, some debate still surrounds the accuracy of this procedure in terms of false-negative rate.

Role of 18F-DOPA PET/CT in diagnosis and follow-up of adrenal and extra-adrenal paragangliomas.

Purpose: The objective of this study was to establish the clinical value of F-DOPA PET/CT in patients with adrenal and extra-adrenal paragangliomas (PGLs).

Methods: Twenty-six consecutive patients with suspected or recurrent PGL underwent MR (and/or CT) and F-DOPA PET/CT. Histopathology confirmation was obtained in 20 cases.