Positron Emission Tomogragraphy

Positron Emission Tomographic Scanning of Human Cardiac Sympathetic Nerves with 18F-labeled Fluorodopamine

Positron emission tomographic scanning the heart using 18F-labeled-fluorodopamine as an imaging agent enables non-invasive visualization of the sympathetic nerves innervating the human myocardium. The approach allows detection of regional abnormalities in sympathetic innervation that may be associated with diseases of the heart, such as hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, ischemic heart disease, cardiac failure, ventricular arrythmias and dysautonomias. PET scanning with 18F-labeled fluorodopamine combined with radiotracer-kinetic analysis of cardiac sympathetic function offers powerful methodology to examine involvement of the sympathetic nervous system in diseases of the human heart.

Links to Web Sites about PET scanning

PET studies at the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio - Some good basic information explaining PET scanning.
Sympathetic Cardioneuropathy in Dysautonomias - A manuscript using PET scanning to examine cardiac sympathetic nerve function in dysautonomias published in the NEW ENGLAND JOURNAL OF MEDICINE (authors: David S. Goldstein, Courtney Holmes, Richard O. Cannon III, Graeme Eisenhofer, Irwin J. Kopin).
Positron business services - Management and Marketing Programs for PET Centers.
University of Pittsburg Medical Center PET facility
PET scanning at the University of Tennessee Medical Center at Knoxsville

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