Standardized uptake value atlas: characterization of physiological 2-deoxy-2-[18F]fluoro-D-glucose uptake in normal tissues.

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to map the distribution of 2-deoxy-2-[18F]fluoro-D-glucose (FDG) uptake in organs of patients with no known abnormalities in those tissues.

PROCEDURES: We measured maximum and mean standardized uptake values (SUV) from FDG-positron emission tomography (PET)/computed tomography (CT) obtained from 98 patients (48 males and 50 females).

RESULTS

Significant uptake (mean SUVmean>2.5) was visualized in the cerebellum (8.0+/-2.2), soft palate (2.92+/-0.86), palatine tonsils (3.45+/-1.4), lingual tonsils (3.08+/-1.05), sublingual glands (3.3+/-1.5), and testes (2.57+/-0.56). Negative correlation for FDG uptake versus age was observed for the palatine tonsils, sublingual glands, and lungs (P<0.001).

CONCLUSION

Better understanding of physiological uptake throughout the body is valuable for improved interpretive accuracy and should be useful for future semi-automated comparisons to a normal SUV database.