Clinical PET Myocardial Perfusion Imaging and Flow Quantification

Abstract

Cardiac PET imaging is a powerful tool for the assessment of coronary artery disease. Many tracers with different advantages and disadvantages are available. It has several advantages over single photon emission computed tomography, including superior accuracy and lower radiation exposure. It provides powerful prognostic information, which can help to stratify patients and guide clinicians. The addition of flow quantification enables better detection of multivessel disease while providing incremental prognostic information. Flow quantification provides important physiologic information, which may be useful to individualize patient therapy. This approach is being applied in some centers, but requires standardization before it is more widely applied.

Keywords: Flow quantification; Myocardial blood flow; Myocardial flow reserve; Myocardial perfusion imaging; N-13-ammonia; PET; Rubidium-82.