Page 160 - Canine Lameness

132 10 Diagnostic Imaging Techniques in Lameness Evaluation

(A) (B)

(C)

Figure 10.6 PET/CT images of a dog with subtle right thoracic limb lameness: whole body PET scan fused
PET/CT and CT images of the right and left carpus (left included for comparison): (A) whole body PET scan
showing areas of uptake throughout the body. Salivary gland, brain, gastrointestinal, and urinary tract
uptake is normal. Note the right carpus with increased metabolic activity (arrow) compared to left carpus
(right is on right side in this image [R]); (B) fused PET/CT transverse image at level of right and left carpus.
Note the increased metabolic activity of the right carpus with mild soft tissue thickening (arrow) compared
to left carpus; (C) CT post‐contrast study in soft tissue window at the level of the right and left carpus. Note
the soft tissue thickening of the right carpus (arrow). Right carpal arthrocentesis revealed chronic synovial
inflammation.

CT. PET alone is substantially limited by low spatial resolution and its inability to provide anatomi-
cal detail. Combining PET with structural imaging techniques such as CT (or even MRI) provides
useful physiologic information to detect abnormalities while allowing exact anatomic localization
of pathology.
PET/CT imaging can be used to localize lameness and identify areas of abnormality due to
higher metabolic activity compared to normal (Mann et al. 2016; Grobman et al. 2018). These
changes may guide further diagnostics to determine the cause of the increased metabolic activity