title: Evaluation of 18FDG PET-CT in the diagnosis of endometriosis: a prospective study.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Noninvasive techniques have poor sensitivity and specificity in diagnosing endometriosis, which is often associated with an inflammatory process. In several benign diseases, measurement of hypermetabolism using fluorodeoxyglucose (18F 18FDG) reflects the degree of inflammation and aggressiveness of the disease. This prospective study evaluated the value of (18)FDG positron emission tomography (PET)-computed tomography (CT) in assessing the presence of endometriosis.
  
  
  METHODS
  Ten consecutive patients suspected with endometriosis were prospectively included in this study. A preoperative 18FDG PET-CT was performed in all the patients during the follicular phase of their cycle, which preceded laparoscopic surgery. Surgical endometriosis staging and histopathological analysis of removed tissue were confronted with the results from 18FDG PET-CT.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Of the 10 patients, 9 had endometriosis confirmed by laparoscopy; 6 had advanced stage of the disease and 5 had histologically proven lesions. Nevertheless, none of the patients had 18FDG-demonstrated hypermetabolism at PET-CT.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  In this preliminary series, we did not observe hypermetabolic activity in relation to endometriosis using 18FDG PET-CT. This study's most important limitation is the use of 18FDG as an isotopic tracer, which is not specific to endometrial tissue.
authors.affiliation: Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, CHU St. Pierre, Université Libre de Bruxelles, 1000 Brussels, Belgium. maxime_fastrez@stpierre-bru.be
authors.forename: Maxime
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Fastrez
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Nogarède
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Tondeur
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Sirtaine
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Rozenberg
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D004715:Endometriosis / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D005260:Female; D019788:Fluorodeoxyglucose F18; D006801:Humans; D010535:Laparoscopy; D010865:Pilot Projects; D049268:Positron-Emission Tomography / Q000379:methods*; D011446:Prospective Studies; D019275:Radiopharmaceuticals; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed / Q000379:methods*; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D019275:Radiopharmaceuticals; D019788:Fluorodeoxyglucose F18