title: Metabolic measurement techniques to assess bone fracture healing: a preliminary study.
abstract: The purpose of this study was to project the effectiveness of using positron emission tomography for evaluation of fracture healing using the analogous method of liquid scintillation. A reproducible comminuted fracture model in rabbit femurs was stabilized with external fixation. Thirty-nine rabbits were divided into four groups: Group A had slight distraction, Group B had shortening, Group C had a bone defect, and Group D was the sham control group. At 2 and 4 weeks after fracture, the femurs had liquid scintillation measurements using 2-[14C]-deoxyglucose (2DG C-14). Glucose uptake was significantly elevated in the experimental limb relative to the contralateral control femurs at both times. The distraction group showed a significant decrease in uptake from 2-4 weeks. There was a high correlation between the liquid scintillation measurements and the radiographic fracture healing scores, with higher levels of 2DG C-14 uptake corresponding to lower levels of fracture healing calcification. The high correlation found between 2DG C-14 uptake and radiographic scores suggests that positron emission tomography used in conjunction with a glucose-based radiopharmaceutical such as 2-[18F]fluoro-2-deoxyglucose can monitor the fracture healing process effectively.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biomedical Engineering, Henry Samueli School of Engineering and Applied Science, University of California-Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA.
authors.forename: Anne E
authors.initials: AE
authors.lastname: Severns
authors.forename: Yu-Po
authors.initials: YP
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: Scott D
authors.initials: SD
authors.lastname: Nelson
authors.forename: Eric E
authors.initials: EE
authors.lastname: Johnson
authors.forename: J Michael
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Kabo
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001842:Bone and Bones / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000378:metabolism*; D017102:Fracture Healing / Q000502:physiology*; D008297:Male; D011817:Rabbits; D014055:Tomography, Emission-Computed