Effect Of Blood Glucose On Image Quality And Suvmax In Pet/Ct Scans
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Abstract
Objective: To evaluate the impact of blood glucose levels on image quality and SUV values in ¹⁸F-FDG PET/CT imaging.
Materials and methods: A cross-sectional descriptive study was conducted on 200 lung cancer patients undergoing pre-treatment staging PET/CT scans at Phenikaa University Hospital from January 2025 to June 2025. Patients were classified into four groups based on pre-injection blood glucose levels: <6.1 mmol/L; 6.1–8.3 mmol/L; 8.4–11.1 mmol/L; and >11.1 mmol/L. Image quality was independently assessed by two nuclear medicine physicians using a 5-point scale. The SUVmax of the target lesion was also recorded.
Results: Image quality and SUVmax progressively decreased as blood glucose levels increased. The group with glucose <6.1 mmol/L had the highest average image quality score (4.8 points) and an average SUVmax of 12.4. In contrast, the group with glucose >11.1 mmol/L had the lowest average image quality score (2.8 points), an average SUVmax of 8.1, and a scan repetition rate of 15.2%. These findings clearly demonstrate the significant impact of blood glucose on image noise and lesion detectability.
Conclusion: Elevated blood glucose levels significantly reduce image quality and SUVmax. It is recommended that the ideal glucose level be <6.1 mmol/L and should be maintained below 8.3 mmol/L prior to scanning.
Keywords
Keywords: PET/CT, blood glucose, SUVmax, image quality, PET/CT
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References
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