Exploring 18F-FDG uptake patterns in liver, spleen, and bone marrow: Implications for inflammatory and infectious conditions.

Abstract

Objective: This study aimed to explore the relationship between fluorine-18-fluorodeoxyglucose (¹⁸F-FDG) uptake in the liver, spleen, and bone marrow and inflammatory markers such as c-reactive protein (CRP), albumin, and erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) in patients undergoing positron emission tomography/computed tomography (PET/CT) imaging for cancer diagnosis.

Subjects and methods: This retrospective cross-sectional study included a total of 708 patients with a diagnosis of malignancy. Fluorine-18-FDG PET/CT images acquired between January 2021 and December 2022. Exclusion criteria comprised prior chemotherapy, radiotherapy, hematological malignancies, or liver/spleen tumors. Statistical analysis included correlation analysis, univariate, and multivariate regression analysis.

Results: C-reactive protein levels demonstrated a significant positive correlation with ¹⁸F-FDG uptake in the spleen (r=0.104, P=0.006) and bone marrow (r=0.112, P=0.003). Albumin showed a negative correlation with liver ¹⁸F-FDG uptake (r=-0.220, P<0.001). Regression analysis revealed ESR's impact on spleen-to-liver (P=0.023) and bone marrow-to-liver (P=0.012) ¹⁸F-FDG uptake.

Conclusion: This study demonstrates the association between inflammatory markers and ¹⁸F-FDG uptake in liver, spleen and bone marrow. C-reactive protein and ESR showing significant correlations with spleen and bone marrow ¹⁸F-FDG uptake, and albumin correlated with liver ¹⁸F-FDG uptake negatively. Erythrocyte sedimentation rate had significant impact on spleen and bone marrow ¹⁸F-FDG uptakes. These findings suggest the potential of ¹⁸F-FDG PET/CT in diagnosing inflammatory conditions, warranting further investigation into its clinical implications.