The Clinical Impact of Using ¹⁸F-FDG-PET/CT in the Diagnosis of Suspected Vasculitis: The Effect of Dose and Timing of Glucocorticoid Treatment

Figure 2

Diagram of the study design. 82 patients with a clinical suspicion of vasculitis referred for ¹⁸F-FDG-PET/CT were included. Diagnoses were confirmed by consensus-based decisions made by specialists after evaluation of a standard extensive workup, ¹⁸F-FDG-PET/CT scan, and a minimum of 6 months follow-up. Vasculitis patients with a negative ¹⁸F-FDG-PET/CT for vasculitis had other minor findings in PET/CT: mild infection (n = 2, 12%), pericarditis (n = 1, 6%), and pleuritis (n = 1, 6%). Among nonvasculitis patients, clinically significant ¹⁸F-FDG-PET/CT findings were as follows: NIID (n = 12), infection (n = 8), malignancy (n = 3), and miscellaneous (n = 2). LVV = large-vessel vasculitis. AAV = antineutrophil cytoplasmic antibody- (ANCA-) associated vasculitis. NIID = noninfectious inflammatory disease other than vasculitis.