Do you recommend the use of FDG PET/CT in joint prosthesis infection?

“This indication is listed in the FDG SmPC of EMA only for the hip, not for the knee or the shoulder. If negative, the NPV is good enough to rule out an active infection unless there are major arguments favouring this diagnosis. If positive, a differential diagnosis with pure inflammation should be made, considering the location of the foci (references in my presentation) and the presence of foci in the soft tissue. In difficult cases, labelled leucocytes scintigraphy cannot be avoided. A pure tracer of infection is currently lacking for PET but researches are underway.”

Dr. Jean-Noël Talbot
Paris, France

Question submitted during the the Conference on Hybrid Imaging Live 2019 regarding Dr. Talbot’s lecture on “Hybrid PET in inflammation and infection”