Iliopsoas abscess associated with endovascular infection: an acute case of chronic Q fever.

fever is a zoonosis caused by Coxiella burnetii, which occurs worldwide. After acute Q fever infection, 1% to 5% of patients develop chronic Q fever. Chronic Q fever usually presents as endocarditis or endovascular infection. The diagnosis and localization of chronic Q fever are challenging, as most patients present with nonspecific symptoms. Moreover, it often occurs in patients without a known episode of acute infection.

Computer-aided evaluation of the anatomical accuracy of hybrid SPECT/spiral-CT imaging of lesions localized in the neck and upper abdomen.

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to investigate the anatomical accuracy of hardware-based single-photon emission computed tomography/computed tomography (SPECT/CT) registration in the upper abdomen and neck. METHODS: The database consisted of 90 patients referred for SPECT/CT for diagnostic workup of either thyroid/parathyroid disease (n=46) or abdominal neuroendocrine tumours (n=44). In the first group, 99mTc-MIBI was used as the tracer and in the second 123I-metaiodobenzylguanidine (n=13), 111In-octreotide (n=28) or 99mTc-octreotide (n=3). For predefined structures represented by both modalities, the distances between the centres of gravity of their CT and SPECT representation were determined in a semiautomated manner. In cervical data sets, this analysis was performed for the submandibular salivary glands (n=92) and in abdominal data sets for 69 neoplastic foci. RESULTS: The mean distances were 5.7 ± 2.0 mm (range: 1.84-9.67 mm) in the neck and 6.8 ± 3.3 mm (range: 1.4-19.7 mm) in the abdomen. In 42 out of 92 of the cervical and 40 out of 69 of the abdominal data sets at least one of the X-direction-determined, Y-direction-determined, and Z-direction-determined distances was greater than the SPECT pixel width of 4.6 mm. CONCLUSION: The anatomical accuracy of hardware-based SPECT/CT fusion depends also on the region of the body studied. For example, in the neck and upper abdomen the accuracy is lower than in the lower lumbar spine. In clinical routine, SPECT/CT data sets acquired for the neck and upper abdomen should be regularly checked and corrected for SPECT/CT misalignment. This is, in particular, important when CT-based corrections of SPECT involving pixelwise data integration such as for attenuation correction are made.

The integration of PET-CT scans from different hospitals into radiotherapy treatment planning.

PURPOSE: To integrate PET-CT scans from different hospitals into radiotherapy treatment planning. METHODS AND MATERIALS: A cylindrical phantom with spheres of different diameters was scanned on three different Siemens Biograph PET-CT scanners in three hospitals. The spheres and cylinder were filled with 18F-FDG such that different sphere-to-background (S/B) ratios were obtained. Scans were analyzed using dedicated software for automated delineation based on standardized uptake value (SUV) and using different reconstruction parameters. RESULTS: SUV thresholding curves for different S/B ratios were obtained for the different scanners. Differences in SUV auto-contouring thresholds were found to be significant for PET-CT simulators from different radiotherapy and nuclear medicine departments. A change in PET reconstruction parameters showed a significant effect on the results. CONCLUSION: Synchronization of PET-CT imaging protocols between cooperating hospitals is important for reliable determination of SUV auto-contouring thresholds. Whenever this goal has been achieved automated SUV delineation based on a S/B ratio using PET-CT images from different institutions can reliably be performed using individually determined threshold curves.