Abstract

As the spectrum of diagnosis of inflammatory joint diseases is shifting towards very early diagnosis and individualised treatment strategies are required to optimize treatment outcomes, there is a need for sensitive imaging techniques to detect and monitor joint inflammation. FDG-PET(-CT) allows highly sensitive imaging of (subclinical) arthritis at a molecular level. The technique provides non-invasive information of the whole body in one scan session. Both visual and quantitative analyses can be applied, the latter in particular useful for therapy monitoring. Pattern of FDG uptake in (peri-)articular tissues can aid in the diagnostic work-up of the individual patient. Most recently, hybrid PET-MRI has been introduced on the market, which enables investigation of both inflammatory and anatomical signs of arthritis, at a reduced radiation level as compared to PET-CT. The lecture will provide an overview of the current status of FDG-PET for imaging in joint inflammation in chronic joint diseases and will include comparison with other advanced imaging techniques as ultrasound and MRI.