Clinical utility of ¹⁸F FDG-PET/CT in the detection of bone marrow disease in Hodgkin's lymphoma

Objective

The aim of the study was to evaluate the potential role of fludeoxyglucose (FDG)-positron emission tomography (PET)/CT in the detection of bone/bone marrow disease in patients with Hodgkin''s lymphoma (HL).

Methods

We retrospectively reviewed (¹⁸F)-FDG-PET/CT scans of 122 newly diagnosed, biopsy-proven cases of HL performed between November 2009 and June 2010. All the patients were staged before treatment by both PET/CT and bone marrow biopsy (BMB). Patients were subdivided into three groups based on the findings of FDG-PET/CT. Group A consisted of patients showing diffuse FDG uptake, Group B consisted of patients showing unifocal FDG uptake and Group C patients showed multifocal FDG-avid foci on PET/CT scans. Bone marrow results were also reviewed and considered positive if lymphomatous involvement was detected on bone marrow trephine biopsy. BMB results were correlated with FDG-PET/CT findings.

Results

There were 122 patients in total—81 (66.4%) were male and 41 (33.6%) were female. The age range was from 6 years to 78 years (mean 35.70 years). PET/CT was reported as negative for bone/bone marrow involvement in 85 (69.7%) patients, while the remaining 37 showed abnormal FDG uptake. The sensitivity of FDG-PET/CT was calculated to be 100%, the specificity was 76.57%, the negative predictive value was 76.57%, the positive predictive value was 29.72% and the diagnostic accuracy was 78.62%.

Conclusion

¹⁸F-FDG-PET/CT and BMB are complementary in the evaluation of bone marrow disease.Fluorine-18 (¹⁸F)-fludeoxyglucose (FDG) has found widespread use in the diagnosis and staging work-up of lymphomas. One of the most promising applications is in the determination of clinical stage of disease at presentation or recurrence [1]. Accurate staging is essential for planning an effective treatment regimen and minimising side effects and toxicity [2]. Bone marrow infiltration is of prime importance not only in staging the disease but also in the tailoring of treatment protocols [3]. Bone involvement can result from haematogenous spread or by extension from adjacent soft tissues [4,5]. Bone marrow involvement in patients with lymphoma is considered as a sign of generalised disease and with less favourable prognosis. Bone marrow biopsy (BMB) is the established method for the detection of bone marrow infiltration. BMB is generally safe but should not be considered as a risk-free procedure; adverse events (haemorrhage, infection etc) have been reported in about 0.12% of cases [6]. It is an invasive and painful experience for the patients and it sometimes results in only a small sample which may turn out to be inconclusive. Bone marrow involvement is diagnosed in 50–80% of patients with low-grade non-Hodgkin''s lymphoma (NHL), 25–40% of those with high-grade NHL and 5–14% of those with Hodgkin''s lymphoma (HL) [6,7]. Lymphoma staging is based on Ann Arbor classification with Cotswolds modifications [8], which includes CT and BMB. Radiologically, CT may depict cortical bone changes but has low sensitivity for early bone marrow involvement [8,9]. Unilateral or bilateral BMB of the dorsal iliac crest is considered as the standard method for detecting bone marrow involvement complemented by MRI when needed [2,10-12]. The potential role of FDG-positron emission tomography (PET)/CT is yet to be determined for the assessment of bone marrow involvement, as very few systematic studies have been carried out in this regard. Since the advent of FDG-PET/CT, functional imaging has emerged as an important imaging tool in differentiating viable tumour tissue from necrotic and therapy-induced fibrosis [13,14]. The aim of the current study was to correlate BMB and PET/CT results as part of baseline staging work-up and to assess the clinical utility of FDG-PET/CT in the detection of bone/bone marrow disease.     

事故后飞行人员的心理治疗与康复

飞行人员在其职业生涯中，不可避免地耳闻目睹或亲身经历飞行事故。对当事机组人员产生严重的心理问题应给予及时矫治。笔者采用音乐治疗、生物反馈放松训练、系统脱敏、成功表象飞行训练、空中特殊情况表象训练等一系列方法，分别对三位事故后产生创伤后应激障碍的空中乘务员、飞行驾驶员进行治疗，取得了较好的疗效。     

男性分裂症患者和罪犯攻击行为相关因素对照研究

本研究采用病例对照研究方法，收集了８０例有攻击行为男性分裂症患者和７９例暴力犯罪罪犯，主要从人格特征、智力结构、社会支持和早年不良家庭环境等方面，探索分裂症病人和罪犯攻击行为相关因素的差异。结果发现具攻击行为的分裂症病人较多有攻击行为史，而罪犯的攻击行为前有较多的诱发因素，且与早年遭受父母虐待关系更为密切。     

Active management of the third stage at Caesarean section: a randomised controlled trial of misoprostol versus Syntocinon

The objective of this trial was to investigate whether 500 microg oral misoprostol given immediately after delivery of the neonate at Caesarean section is as effective as a bolus intravenous injection of 10 iu Syntocinon in stimulating uterine contractions and thereby reducing blood loss. Forty women undergoing elective or emergency Caesarean section were included in a placebo-controlled randomised trial. Group 1 received oral misoprostol and a placebo intravenous bolus and Group 2 received intravenous Syntocinon and oral placebo tablets. The main outcome measures were estimated blood loss at Caesarean section, drop in serum haemoglobin, and the need for additional uterotonic agents. We found that there was no significant difference (p = 0.75) in estimated blood loss between the two groups. No differences were observed in the decrease in haemoglobin, requirement for additional oxytocics, the need for blood transfusion or the degree of shivering in each group (p > 0.05 in each case). We concluded that oral misoprostol could be used as an alternative oxytocic agent for the third stage at Caesarean section. However, there is an obvious need for a larger randomised controlled trial to be undertaken. Previous published studies have concentrated on vaginal births and further studies should be extended to Caesarean deliveries.     

Infundibulum of the common origin of fourth lumbar arteries and median sacral artery

We describe an infundibulum of a common origin of the fourth lumbar arteries and the median sacral artery. To the best of our knowledge there has been no such published case thus far and its natural course is unknown, in view of its novelty. Infundibular dilatations in intracranial arteries have been described to progress in size and potentially rupture. Therefore, we recommended follow‐up imaging, as part of the management, to ensure stability of the infundibulum.