Premium
Interpretability of PET/CT imaging in head and neck cancer patients following composite mandibular resection and osteocutaneous free flap reconstruction
Author(s) -
Oliver Christopher,
Muthukrishnan Ashok,
Mountz James,
Deeb Erin,
Johnson Jonas,
Deleyiannis Frederic
Publication year - 2008
Publication title -
head and neck
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.012
H-Index - 127
eISSN - 1097-0347
pISSN - 1043-3074
DOI - 10.1002/hed.20677
Subject(s) - medicine , mandible (arthropod mouthpart) , sternum , interpretability , osteotomy , nuclear medicine , head and neck cancer , positron emission tomography , head and neck , free flap , radiology , malignancy , radiation therapy , surgery , pathology , botany , machine learning , computer science , biology , genus
Background. We investigated positron emission tomography (PET)/CT scanning following segmental resections and osteocutaneous free‐flap reconstruction. The interpretability of PET/CT imaging with healing osteotomies and reconstruction hardware was analyzed. Methods. Patient scans within 18 months of surgery were interpreted for malignancy. Interpretations were compared with clinical data to determine sensitivity/specificity. Standardized uptake values (SUVs) were determined for bony controls, osteotomies, and tumors and were analyzed using paired t test. Results Fifteen scans were visually interpreted, 13 underwent SUV analysis. Reconstruction hardware did not interfere with interpretability. Sensitivity and specificity were 88% and 86%, respectively. Osteotomy sites averaged 25% higher SUVs compared with bony controls (vs sternum p = .003, vs mandible p = .008). Tumor SUVs were higher than osteotomies ( p = .023) and controls (vs sternum p = .013, vs mandible p = .025). Conclusion. Although osteotomies were characterized by an increased fluorodeoxyglucose signal, scan interpretability was unimpaired. Our study suggests that PET/CT imaging can be utilized to survey free‐flap patients at acceptable levels of sensitivity/specificity. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Head Neck, 2008