Fluorine-18 deoxyglucose PET for assessment of viable myocardium in perfusion defects in 99mTc-MIBI SPET: a comparative study in patients with coronary artery disease.

Extent and frequency of viable tissue in myocardial segments yielding a perfusion defect on technetium-99m methoxyisobutylisonitrile (99mTc-MIBI), single photon emission tomography (SPET) at rest was prospectively investigated with 2-18F-2-deoxyglucose (18FDG) positron emission tomography (PET) in 46 patients with chronic coronary artery disease (CAD). Of these, 43 had a history of old myocardial infarction. For comparative visual and quantitative evaluation of identical anatomical slices, PET image files were converted into the SPET file structure and into the same matrix size. SPET and PET images were documented and visually (9 segments/patient) or semiquantitatively evaluated by a target-like polar map. Relative perfusion was expressed in percentage of peak 99mTc-MIBI uptake. Sample 18FDG uptake was related to the 18FDG uptake in the area of such maximal perfusion (18FDG uptake was 100% at the 100% 99mTc-MIBI uptake area). Of 414 segments, 167 (40%) revealed a resting perfusion defect. 18FDG uptake was present in 38 (23%) of the defects, while another 40 (24%) segments yielded 18FDG uptake in the periphery of the defect. When grouped according to the degree of 99mTc-MIBI uptake-reduction (in percentage of peak activity), 80% of severe defects (less than or equal to 30% of peak uptake), 48% of moderate (31%-50% of peak uptake) and 31% of mild (greater than 50% of peak uptake) defects were considered as non-viable on the basis of 18FDG uptake. Complete viability was found in none of the severe defects in contrast to 29% of moderate and 35% of mild perfusion defects.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)