Infection imaging using [18F]FDG-labelled white blood cell positron emission tomography–computed tomography

This is the authors' abstract. We don't add key points for this paper.

Localizing the sites of infection in the body is possible in nuclear medicine using a variety of radiopharmaceuticals that target different components of the infective and inflammatory cascade. Gamma(γ)-emitting agents such as [67Ga]gallium citrate were among the first tracers used, followed by development of positron-emitting tracers like 2-deoxy-2-[18F]fluoro-D-glucose (18F-FDG). Though these tracers are quite sensitive, they have limited specificity for infection due to their concentration in sites of non-infective inflammation. White blood cells (WBC) labelled with γ or positron emitters have higher accuracy for differentiating the infective processes from the non-infective conditions that may show positivity with tracers such as 18F-FDG. We present a pictorial review of potential clinical applications of PET/CT using 18F-FDG labelled WBC.