SPECT Imaging of Epilepsy: An Overview and Comparison with F-18 FDG PET

Overview

Journal Int J Mol Imaging

Date 2011 Jul 26

PMID 21785722

Citations 25

Authors

Sunhee Kim

James M Mountz

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

Epilepsy surgery is highly effective in treating refractory epilepsy, but requires accurate presurgical localization of the epileptogenic focus. Briefly, localization of the region of seizure onset traditionally dependents on seizure semiology, scalp EEG recordings and correlation with anatomical imaging modalities such as MRI. The introduction of noninvasive functional neuroimaging methods, including single-photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) and positron emission tomography (PET) has dramatically changed the method for presurgical epilepsy evaluation. These imaging modalities have become powerful tools for the investigation of brain function and are an essential part of the evaluation of epileptic patients. Of these methods, SPECT has the practical capacity to image blood flow functional changes that occur during seizures in the routine clinical setting. In this review we present the basic principles of epilepsy SPECT and PET imaging. We discuss the properties of the SPECT tracers to be used for this purpose and imaging acquisition protocols as well as the diagnostic performance of SPECT in addition to SPECT image analysis methods. This is followed by a discussion and comparison to F-18 FDG PET acquisition and imaging analysis methods.

Citing Articles

Chronic Visual Abnormality in an Elderly Patient With Temporal Lobe Epilepsy.

Atsuji K, Neshige S, Ohno N, Maruyama H Cureus. 2024; 16(3):e56696.

PMID: 38646321 PMC: 11032511. DOI: 10.7759/cureus.56696.

Lateralization of interictal temporal lobe hypoperfusion in lesional and non-lesional temporal lobe epilepsy using arterial spin labeling MRI.

Rentzeperis F, Abdennadher M, Snyder K, Dembny K, Abdollahi S, Zaghloul K Epilepsy Res. 2023; 193:107163.

PMID: 37187039 PMC: 10247543. DOI: 10.1016/j.eplepsyres.2023.107163.

Seizure-induced neutrophil adhesion in brain capillaries leads to a decrease in postictal cerebral blood flow.

Lim H, Bae S, Han K, Kang B, Jeong Y, Kim S iScience. 2023; 26(5):106655.

PMID: 37168551 PMC: 10164910. DOI: 10.1016/j.isci.2023.106655.

Neurological update: structural and functional imaging in epilepsy surgery.

Yoganathan K, Malek N, Torzillo E, Paranathala M, Greene J J Neurol. 2023; 270(5):2798-2808.

PMID: 36792721 PMC: 10130132. DOI: 10.1007/s00415-023-11619-z.

Comparison of Qualitative and Quantitative Analyses of MR-Arterial Spin Labeling Perfusion Data for the Assessment of Pediatric Patients with Focal Epilepsies.

Tortora D, Cataldi M, Severino M, Consales A, Pacetti M, Parodi C Diagnostics (Basel). 2022; 12(4).

PMID: 35453858 PMC: 9032819. DOI: 10.3390/diagnostics12040811.

References

Knowlton R, Lawn N, Mountz J, Kuzniecky R . Ictal SPECT analysis in epilepsy: subtraction and statistical parametric mapping techniques. Neurology. 2004; 63(1):10-5. DOI: 10.1212/01.wnl.0000132885.83350.45. View

Henry T, Mazziotta J, Engel Jr J . Interictal metabolic anatomy of mesial temporal lobe epilepsy. Arch Neurol. 1993; 50(6):582-9. DOI: 10.1001/archneur.1993.00540060022011. View

Theodore W, Sato S, Kufta C, Gaillard W, Kelley K . FDG-positron emission tomography and invasive EEG: seizure focus detection and surgical outcome. Epilepsia. 1997; 38(1):81-6. DOI: 10.1111/j.1528-1157.1997.tb01081.x. View

Andersen A . 99mTc-D,L-hexamethylene-propyleneamine oxime (99mTc-HMPAO): basic kinetic studies of a tracer of cerebral blood flow. Cerebrovasc Brain Metab Rev. 1989; 1(4):288-318. View

Delbeke D, Lawrence S, Abou-Khalil B, Blumenkopf B, Kessler R . Postsurgical outcome of patients with uncontrolled complex partial seizures and temporal lobe hypometabolism on 18FDG-positron emission tomography. Invest Radiol. 1996; 31(5):261-6. DOI: 10.1097/00004424-199605000-00003. View

Kuhl D, Engel Jr J, Phelps M, Selin C . Epileptic patterns of local cerebral metabolism and perfusion in humans determined by emission computed tomography of 18FDG and 13NH3. Ann Neurol. 1980; 8(4):348-60. DOI: 10.1002/ana.410080403. View

OBrien T, So E, Mullan B, Hauser M, Brinkmann B, Bohnen N . Subtraction ictal SPECT co-registered to MRI improves clinical usefulness of SPECT in localizing the surgical seizure focus. Neurology. 1998; 50(2):445-54. DOI: 10.1212/wnl.50.2.445. View

Lee H, Hong S, Tae W . Opposite ictal perfusion patterns of subtracted SPECT. Hyperperfusion and hypoperfusion. Brain. 2000; 123 ( Pt 10):2150-9. DOI: 10.1093/brain/123.10.2150. View

Cikrit D, Dalsing M, Harting P, Burt R, Lalka S, Sawchuk A . Cerebral vascular reactivity assessed with acetazolamide single photon emission computer tomography scans before and after carotid endarterectomy. Am J Surg. 1997; 174(2):193-7. DOI: 10.1016/s0002-9610(97)90081-7. View

10.

Conti P . Introduction to imaging brain tumor metabolism with positron emission tomography (PET). Cancer Invest. 1995; 13(2):244-59. DOI: 10.3109/07357909509011694. View

11.

Buch K, Blumenfeld H, Spencer S, Novotny E, Zubal I . Evaluating the accuracy of perfusion/metabolism (SPET/PET) ratio in seizure localization. Eur J Nucl Med Mol Imaging. 2007; 35(3):579-88. DOI: 10.1007/s00259-007-0550-y. View

12.

Ho S, Berkovic S, Berlangieri S, Newton M, Egan G, Tochon-Danguy H . Comparison of ictal SPECT and interictal PET in the presurgical evaluation of temporal lobe epilepsy. Ann Neurol. 1995; 37(6):738-45. DOI: 10.1002/ana.410370607. View

13.

MARKAND O, Spencer S, Anderson A . SPECT in epilepsy. J Neuroimaging. 1995; 5 Suppl 1:S23-33. DOI: 10.1111/jon19955s1s23. View

14.

Zubal I, Spencer S, Imam K, Seibyl J, Smith E, Wisniewski G . Difference images calculated from ictal and interictal technetium-99m-HMPAO SPECT scans of epilepsy. J Nucl Med. 1995; 36(4):684-9. View

15.

HOLMAN B, Devous Sr M . Functional brain SPECT: the emergence of a powerful clinical method. J Nucl Med. 1992; 33(10):1888-904. View

16.

Leiderman D, Balish M, Sato S, Kufta C, Reeves P, Gaillard W . Comparison of PET measurements of cerebral blood flow and glucose metabolism for the localization of human epileptic foci. Epilepsy Res. 1992; 13(2):153-7. DOI: 10.1016/0920-1211(92)90071-z. View

17.

Spencer S . The relative contributions of MRI, SPECT, and PET imaging in epilepsy. Epilepsia. 1994; 35 Suppl 6:S72-89. DOI: 10.1111/j.1528-1157.1994.tb05990.x. View

18.

Fois A . Infantile spasms: review of the literature and personal experience. Ital J Pediatr. 2010; 36:15. PMC: 2829573. DOI: 10.1186/1824-7288-36-15. View

19.

Bouilleret V, Valenti M, Hirsch E, Semah F, Namer I . Correlation between PET and SISCOM in temporal lobe epilepsy. J Nucl Med. 2002; 43(8):991-8. View

20.

Leveille J, Demonceau G, Walovitch R . Intrasubject comparison between technetium-99m-ECD and technetium-99m-HMPAO in healthy human subjects. J Nucl Med. 1992; 33(4):480-4. View