ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: This work aims to present a nuclear medicine imaging service's data regarding applying positron emission-computing tomography (PET/CT) scans with the radiopharmaceutical 68Ga-PSMA-HBED-CC (68Ga-PSMA-11) to diagnose prostate cancer clinical relapse. METHODS: Eighty patients with a mean age of 68.26 years and an average prostatic-specific antigen blood level of 7.49 ng/ml (lower concentration = 0.17 ng/ml) received 68Ga-PSMA-11 intravenously, and full-body images of PET-CT scan were obtained. Of the total of patients admitted to the imaging service, 87.5% were examined for disease's biochemical recurrence and clinical relapse, and 70.0% had a previous radical prostatectomy (RP). RESULTS: Of the patients without RP, 95.8% were detected with intra-glandular disease. The 68Ga- PSMA-11 PET/CT imaging results revealed small lesions, even in patients with low blood levels of prostatic-specific antigen, mainly in metastatic cancer cases in lymph nodes and bones. CONCLUSION: The 68Ga-PSMA-11 PET/CT imaging was essential in detecting prostate cancer, with significantly high sensitivity in detecting recurrent cases. Due to its inherent reliability and sensitivity, PET/CT scanning with 68Ga-PSMA-11 received an increasing number of medical requests throughout the present follow-up study, confirming the augmented demand for this clinical imaging procedure in the regional medical community.
Subject(s)
Gallium Radioisotopes , Prostatic Neoplasms , Aged , Follow-Up Studies , Gallium Isotopes , Humans , Male , Neoplasm Recurrence, Local/diagnostic imaging , Positron Emission Tomography Computed Tomography/methods , Prostatic Neoplasms/pathology , Radiopharmaceuticals , Reproducibility of ResultsABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: COVID-19 is a pandemic disease responsible for many deaths worldwide. Many neurological manifestations have been described. We report a case of normal pressure hydrocephalus (NPH) 2 months after acute COVID19 infection, in a patient without other risk factors. CASE PRESENTATION: A 45-year-old male patient presented an 8-month history of progressive gait disorder and cognitive impairment after being hospitalized for SARS-CoV-2 infection. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) was compatible with NPH. A spinal tap test was positive and there was progressive improvement after shunting, with complete resolution of symptoms. CONCLUSION: Other infections such as syphilis, cryptococcosis and Lyme disease have been associated with NPH. Possible mechanisms for NPH after COVID include disruption of choroid plexus cells by direct viral invasion or as a result of neuroinflammation and cytokine release and hypercoagulability leading to venous congestion and abnormalities of CSF flow. Given the significance of NPH as a cause of reversible dementia, it is important to consider the possibility of a causal association with COVID19 and understand the mechanisms behind this association.