PubMed Health⌕ Search

Biomedical subjects

Ingeborg Goethals

Publications and source records attributed to Ingeborg Goethals.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2007

Mismatch of F-18 fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) positron emission tomography (PET) and Tc-99m pertechnetate single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) in a euthyroid multinodular goiter.

Imaging results of F-18 fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) PET/CT scanning and Tc-99m pertechnetate scintigraphy of the thyroid gland are described and compared with pathology in a patient who was followed after left nephrectomy for renal cell carcinoma diagnosed 10 years earlier. On F-18 FDG PET/CT scanning, a multinodular struma with increased localized F-18 FDG uptake in 4 nodules was seen. Two nodules with increased glucose metabolism appeared normal on Tc-99m pertechnetate scintigraphy. Pathology indicated hyperplastic nodules. High focal F-18 FDG uptake was also seen in a lesion that corresponded with a "cold" nodule on Tc-99m pertechnetate scintigraphy, suggesting malignant disease. However, pathology revealed hyperplastic nodules with a background of aspecific lymphocytic thyroiditis. A fourth nodule with increased F-18 FDG uptake appeared mixed ("cold"/"hot") on Tc-99m pertechnetate scintigraphy. On pathology, a well-differentiated follicular carcinoma was found. These findings, in a single patient, illustrate the wide spectrum of matched and mismatched F-18 FDG and Tc-99m pertechnetate thyroid uptake along with their variable pathologic correlates.

Adenocarcinoma, Follicular↗
PubMed2006

Does regional brain perfusion correlate with eating disorder symptoms in anorexia and bulimia nervosa patients?

OBJECTIVE: Using single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT), we sought brain perfusion correlates of eating disorder symptoms in anorexia and bulimia nervosa patients. METHOD: We investigated 67 female eating disordered (ED) patients. Eating disorder symptoms were measured by the Eating Disorders Inventory (EDI). Determination of brain areas in which regional perfusion co-varied with drive for thinness, bulimia, body dissatisfaction, ineffectiveness, perfectionism, interpersonal distrust, interoceptive awareness and maturity fears was done by open explorative correlation analysis using Statistical Parametrical Mapping (SPM). RESULTS: A significant positive correlation between scores on body dissatisfaction and ineffectiveness, and brain perfusion in the prefrontal and parietal cortex was demonstrated. There were no correlations between other eating disorder symptoms and brain perfusion. CONCLUSION: Based on the finding of an association between regional brain flow and body dissatisfaction and ineffectiveness, we argue that neurobiological findings in ED patients may not only reflect emotional and behavioural factors but cognitive-evaluative features as well.

Adult↗
PubMed2006

Serotonin transporter and dopamine transporter imaging in the canine brain.

The serotonergic and dopaminergic systems are involved in a wide range of emotional and behavioral aspects of animals and humans and are involved in many neuropsychiatric disorders. Selective serotonin (5-HT) reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) are designed to block the 5-HT transporter (SERT), thereby increasing the available 5-HT in the brain. Functional imaging with specific SERT and dopamine transporter (DAT) ligands contributes to the study of the SSRI-transporter interaction. First, we evaluated the feasibility of a canine model in the study of the SERT and DAT with the radioligands [123I]-beta-CIT and [123I]-FP-CIT as well as single-photon emission computed tomography imaging. Second, we studied the effect of SSRIs (sertraline, citalopram and escitalopram) on the SERT and DAT in two dogs. The position of the canine model in the study of the SERT and DAT is discussed and compared with other animal models.

Animals↗
PubMed2006

Myocardial perfusion imaging in the elderly: a review.

Coronary artery disease is a major cause of morbidity and mortality in the elderly population. As a result of ageing of the population and better medical, interventional and surgical treatment of patients with coronary artery disease, more and more elderly patients are referred to the cardiology department for diagnostic work-up. Stress testing, in combination with myocardial perfusion imaging, is routinely used in elderly patients, a population in which the diagnosis of significant coronary artery disease is often challenging because of atypical symptomatology. Since the introduction of technetium-99m ligands for myocardial perfusion imaging, it is possible to perform electrocardiogram-gated perfusion imaging. This not only improves the specificity of the test for coronary artery disease detection, but also enables the simultaneous assessment of left ventricular functional parameters. This article briefly overviews the possible stress modalities, diagnostic accuracy and prognostic value of myocardial perfusion imaging in elderly patients.

Aged↗
PubMed2006

Sequential 99mTc-hydrazinonicotinamide-annexin V imaging for predicting response to chemotherapy.

UNLABELLED: This study was undertaken to evaluate changes in relative (99m)Tc-hydrazinonicotinamide (HYNIC)-annexin V tumor uptake over time in patients undergoing chemotherapeutic treatment at baseline and at 5-7 h and 40-44 h after treatment initiation. Imaging results are related to clinical outcomes, as assessed with response evaluation criteria in solid tumors (RECIST). METHODS: We prospectively included 20 patients (11 men and 9 women; mean age, 59.8 y; range, 22-75 y) scheduled for chemotherapy (n = 19) or bisphosphonate treatment (n = 1). Curable disease was present in 5 patients. The other patients had metastatic disease and were treated in a palliative setting. Three of the 20 enrolled patients were excluded from analysis: 1 patient ultimately refused the proposed chemotherapy treatment; because of difficulties with the labeling procedure, 1 patient did not receive a pretreatment scan; and 1 patient presented with an allergic reaction (rash and nausea) to the (99m)Tc-HYNIC-annexin V formulation. The remaining 17 patients underwent 3 scintigraphic scans with (99m)Tc-HYNIC-annexin V: before treatment and 5-7 h and 40-44 h after treatment initiation. The tumor response was evaluated with RECIST and related to observed changes in the ratios of tumor activity to background activity for the largest known lesion; values exceeding 25% the baseline value on either the 5- to 7-h scan or the 40- to 44-h scan were considered significant. RESULTS: With the proposed sequential imaging protocol and a 25% change threshold, responders to treatment could be separated from nonresponders with a 94% accuracy (16/17 patients). CONCLUSION: Sequential (99m)Tc-HYNIC-annexin V imaging may allow for assessment of the response to chemotherapy within 3 d after treatment initiation.

Adult↗
PubMed2005

Differences of cortical 5-HT2A receptor binding index with SPECT in subtypes of anorexia nervosa: relationship with personality traits?

OBJECTIVE: Using single photon emission computed tomography and the 5-HT2A receptor antagonist, 123I-5-I-R91150, we explored differences in 5-HT2A binding index in anorexia nervosa patients with and without bulimic features. We also searched for associations between temperament dimensions and cortical 5-HT2) binding. METHOD: About 9 restrictive and 7 bulimic anorexia nervosa patients were examined and cortical 123I-5-I-R91150 binding index values were compared between the two subgroups. Open explorative correlation analysis was used to examine any relationships between binding index values and temperament scores, as assessed with the Temperament and Character Inventory. RESULTS: 5-HT2A binding index was significantly reduced in the parietal cortex in bulimic anorexia nervosa patients in comparison with restrictive anorectics. Further, a positive correlation was documented between reward dependence and parietal 5-HT2A binding index across patients in the two subgroups. DISCUSSION: Restrictive anorexia nervosa patients differ from binging/purging anorexia nervosa patients on the basis of a reduced parietal 5-HT2A binding index in the latter. We speculate that the finding of a positive correlation between parietal 5-HT2A binding and reward dependence might reflect an association between these two variables, at least in anorexia nervosa patients.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2005

Blunted prefrontal perfusion in depressed patients performing the Tower of London task.

Impairment of cognition is common in depression, and many tasks on which depressed patients are impaired are sensitive to frontal lobe dysfunction. Performance on the Tower of London (TOL) task, which includes setting up and maintaining multiple subgoals at the same time, has been shown to depend on intact prefrontal cortices. Single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) with 99mTc-ethyl cysteinate dimer was used to compare cognitive activation in nine depressed patients and nine normal controls during performance of the TOL task. Planning times and accuracy were measured as performance parameters, and functional imaging data were analysed with statistical parametric mapping (SPM99) to determine significant voxel-wise differences in activation between the two groups. During activation, depressed patients were as accurate as controls but differed in that they spent more thinking time. These findings agree with the results of neuropsychological studies. Compared with the normal controls, depressed patients were characterized by a blunted perfusion response in the right middle frontal cortex [Brodmann area (BA) 6] and the left superior frontal gyrus (BA 9), and by increased perfusion in the right superior temporal gyrus (BA 21) and the insular cortex (BA 13). This study shows that a SPECT activation procedure using the TOL task under classical test conditions is feasible in depressed patients.

Adult↗
PubMed2005

Brain perfusion SPECT in impulsivity-related personality disorders.

BACKGROUND: Impulsive behaviours in patients with cluster B personality disorders are associated with low glucose metabolism and regional cerebral blood flow in the frontal cortex and subcortical structures. The aim of this study is to confirm the presence of a particular pattern of brain perfusion in a sample of borderline (BPD) and anti-social personality disorder (ASPD) patients using brain perfusion single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT). METHODS: A brain perfusion SPECT study was performed in 37 patients with BPD or ASPD (and no Axis I diagnosis) and 34 healthy control participants. Data were acquired on a triple head Toshiba gamma camera. Scatter and attenuation correction was done. Reconstructed SPECT images were analyzed by Statistical Parametrical Mapping (SPM99). RESULTS: There were no significant differences in age and gender distributions between the patients and the healthy controls. With regard to the functional imaging results, patients were characterized by a reduced regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF) in right temporal and prefrontal brain areas, including the right lateral temporal cortex (BA 21), the right frontopolar cortex (BA 10) and the right ventrolateral prefontal cortex (BA 47). CONCLUSIONS: Patients with BPD and ASPD who showed impulsive behaviour have diminished rCBF in areas of the right prefrontal and temporal cortex.

Adult↗
PubMed2004

Cognitive neuroactivation using SPECT and the Stroop Colored Word Test in patients with diffuse brain injury.

Psychomotor slowing in patients with diffuse brain injury frequently underlies impaired cognitive performance on neuropsychological tests, for example, the Stroop Colored Word test. The aim of the present study was to determine the neural basis associated with performance on the Stroop interference subtask in patients with diffuse brain injury. We hypothesized that patients would be slower than healthy controls, and that this would be associated with brain activations other than those seen in healthy subjects. Brain perfusion, using a split-dose activation paradigm with single photon emission tomography (SPECT) and the Stroop test, was assessed in 9 patients with diffuse brain injury. The Stroop interference score was calculated as a behavioral parameter, and functional imaging data were analyzed with statistical parametrical mapping (SPM99) to determine significant voxel-wise differences of activation between the control and the activation condition. Patients were impaired on the interference subtask of the Stroop test. Comparison of the SPECT data obtained during the activation condition with those obtained during the control condition by means of SPM showed significant activations in the left inferior parietal lobe, the right anterior cingulate extending into the right middle frontal gyrus and the right caudate, and the left posterior cingulate cortex. Patients with diffuse brain injury were slower than healthy controls on the interference subtask of the Stroop test, suggesting difficulty with resistance to distractions. This finding was associated with activation effects in posterior (mainly parietal) brain areas in addition with activation of previously observed anterior (mainly anterior cingulate) brain regions.

Adult↗
PubMed2004

Application of a neuropsychological activation probe with SPECT: the 'Tower of London' task in healthy volunteers.

BACKGROUND: Human planning is a complex mental process that may be evaluated by the 'Tower of London' (TOL) task, which includes setting up and maintaining multiple subgoals at the same time. Although positron emission tomography and functional magnetic resonance imaging have provided reliable data on the recruitment of a neural network engaged in planning tasks, the experimental settings of these studies cannot be applied in clinical conditions. Hence, this study reports on the TOL task under classical neuropsychological test conditions using single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) activation in 10 healthy subjects. METHODS: Participants first performed a control task and then an activation task, i.e., the TOL planning task In the planning task, subjects were required to change, in the minimum number of moves possible, an initial arrangement of beads to match a goal arrangement. Subjects solved a set of eight TOL problems of increasing difficulty. A control task was designed such that it eliminates planning abilities, which is the process of interest. Planning times and accuracy were measured as performance parameters and functional imaging data were analysed with statistical parametric mapping (SPM99) to determine significant voxel-wise activations between the planning task and the control task. RESULTS: Both overall and for each difficulty level, measures of accuracy were within the normal range. Similar results were found for the overall thinking time and thinking times of each difficulty level. That is, performance of the healthy subjects during the TOL task replicated the typical pattern of results found with appropriate control samples in the literature. Also, activation of the right prefrontal cortex was consistent with other functional imaging results, thereby validating the use of the TOL task in a SPECT activation paradigm. CONCLUSIONS: Based on the present study it may be concluded that the close resemblance of the test conditions of the SPECT activation procedure with those of the TOL task in the investigation room constitutes a major advantage for future application of the SPECT activation procedure in clinical conditions.

Adult↗
PubMed2004

Comparison of cortical 5-HT2A receptor binding in bulimia nervosa patients and healthy volunteers.

OBJECTIVE: Bulimia nervosa has been associated with alterations in central serotonergic (5-HT) function. This study investigated iodine-labeled 4-amino-N-[1-[3-(4-fluorophenoxy) propyl]-4-methyl-4-piperidinyl]-5-iodo-2-methoxybenzamide ((123)I-5-I-R91150) binding to the 5-HT(2A) receptor in the brain by using single photon emission computed tomography in acutely ill bulimia nervosa patients. METHOD: Cortical (123)I-5-I-R91150 binding in 10 normal-weight patients with bulimia nervosa, purging type, was compared with that of 11 healthy volunteers. RESULTS: The 5-HT(2A) binding index of the bulimia nervosa patients, with and without correction for age, was not significantly different from that of the comparison group. CONCLUSIONS: As a group, acutely ill bulimia nervosa patients cannot be discriminated from healthy subjects on the basis of cortical (123)I-5-I-R91150 binding to the 5-HT(2A) receptor.

Acute Disease↗
PubMed2003

The prefrontal cortex: insights from functional neuroimaging using cognitive activation tasks.

This review presents neuroimaging studies which have explored the functional anatomy of a variety of cognitive processes represented by the prefrontal cortex (PFC). Overall, these studies have demonstrated that standard prefrontal neuroactivation tasks recruit a widely distributed network within the brain of which the PFC consistently forms a part. As such, these results are in keeping with the notion that executive functions within the PFC rely not only on anterior (mainly prefrontal) brain areas, but also on posterior (mainly parietal) brain regions. Moreover, intervention of similar brain regions in a large number of different executive tasks suggests that higher-level cognitive functions may best be understood in terms of an interactive network of specialised anterior as well as posterior brain regions.

Animals↗
PubMed2003

Nuclear medicine imaging to predict response to radiotherapy: a review.

PURPOSE: To review available literature on positron emission tomography (PET) and single photon emission computerized tomography (SPECT) for the measurement of tumor metabolism, hypoxia, growth factor receptor expression, and apoptosis as predictors of response to radiotherapy. METHODS AND MATERIALS: Medical literature databases (Pubmed, Medline) were screened for available literature and critically analyzed as to their scientific relevance. RESULTS: Studies on 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose PET as a predictor of response to radiotherapy in head-and-neck carcinoma are promising but need confirmation in larger series. 18F-fluorothymine is stable in human plasma, and preliminary clinical data obtained with this marker of tumor cell proliferation are promising. For imaging tumor hypoxia, novel, more widely available radiopharmaceuticals with faster pharmacokinetics are mandatory. Imaging of ongoing apoptosis and growth factor expression is at a very early stage, but results obtained in other domains with radiolabeled peptides appear promising. Finally, for most of the tracers discussed, validation against a gold standard is needed. CONCLUSION: Optimization of the pharmacokinetics of relevant radiopharmaceuticals as well as validation against gold-standard tests in large patient series are mandatory if PET and SPECT are to be implemented in routine clinical practice for the purpose of predicting response to radiotherapy.

Apoptosis↗
PubMed2003

False-negative Tc-99m MIBI scintigraphy in histopathologically proved recurrent high-grade oligodendroglioma.

Tc-99m MIBI is a small lipophilic radioligand that enters cells by diffusion and is preferentially trapped in mitochondria. As a result of the high mitochondrial activity in tumors, Tc-99m MIBI accumulates significantly more in tumor tissue compared with normal tissues. Accordingly, Tc-99m MIBI has been used successfully to visualize primary, metastatic, and recurrent tumor. In brain tumors, Tc-99m MIBI SPECT has been shown to identify tumor recurrence after treatment in high-grade gliomas. In this report, early (30 minutes after injection) and delayed (4 hours after injection) Tc-99m MIBI SPECT did not visualize a histopathologically proved recurrent high-grade oligodendroglioma. Increased vascular supply, disruption of the blood-brain barrier, high-grade cancer, and viability of tumor cells are decisive factors related to increased Tc-99m MIBI uptake in brain tumors. However, the authors' results suggest that still other mechanisms may be involved in Tc-99m MIBI accumulation, which may account for false-negative imaging in brain tumors.

Adult↗
PubMed2003

Decreased 5-HT2a receptor binding in patients with anorexia nervosa.

UNLABELLED: Indirect estimations of brain neurotransmitters in patients with anorexia nervosa (AN) and low weight have demonstrated a reduction in brain serotonin (5-HT) turnover in general and led to hypotheses about dysfunction in the 5-HT(2a) receptor system. It was our aim to investigate the central 5-HT(2a) receptor binding index using SPECT brain imaging. METHODS: The 5-HT(2a) receptors of low-weight patients with AN were studied by means of the highly specific radioiodinated 5-HT(2a) receptor antagonist 4-amino-N-[1-[3-(4-fluorophenoxy)propyl]-4-methyl-4-piperidinyl]-5-iodo-2-methoxybenzamide or (123)I-5-I-R91150. Fifteen patients with clinical diagnoses of AN and 11 age-matched healthy volunteers received intravenous injections of 185 MBq (123)I-5-I-R91150 and were scanned with high-resolution brain SPECT. RESULTS: Compared with healthy volunteers, patients with AN had a significantly reduced 5-HT(2a) binding index in the left frontal cortex, the left and right parietal cortex, and the left and right occipital cortex. A significant left-right asymmetry was noted in the frontal cortex (left < right). CONCLUSION: These results are in accordance with diminished metabolic and perfusion of frontal and parietal cortices reported in recent neuroimaging studies and imply localized disturbed serotonergic function. The data are discussed in the light of possible confounding factors related to the low-weight AN status. A regional cortical reduction in 5-HT(2a) binding index is not likely to be caused by a general reduction in serotonergic function due to the possible confounding factors. Suggestions for further research are given.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2003

The role of nuclear medicine in the prediction and detection of radiation-associated normal pulmonary and cardiac damage.

Dose-effect calculations used in the planning of modern radiotherapy (RT) involving normal lung or cardiac tissue rely on structural imaging techniques, such as CT, as the basis for measuring and predicting dose-response. However, more accurate methods for predicting dose-response may result if information on the locoregional functional status of the irradiated organ(s) is included in the computational model. For RT cases that involve delivering dose to the lung and heart, this may be achieved by the assessment of tomographic scintigraphies of lung perfusion (Q) and ventilation (V) and scintigraphic imaging of myocardial perfusion and function, respectively.

Breast Neoplasms↗