Abstract
Positron emission tomography (PET) is a molecular imaging technique for developing
maps of functional and biochemical activity in target tissues in vivo. PET has led
to significant insights into nervous system biology, physiology, and pathophysiology
in health and disease. Several of these insights and applications have a direct usefulness
for the clinical neurologist. Although [F-18]fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG-) PET has remained
a workhorse of PET imaging, many other radiolabeled biomolecules have been studied
using PET. This article aims to provide an overview of current clinical usefulness
of PET across the neurologic subspecialties including dementias, movement disorders,
epilepsy, brain tumors, and neurologic infectious and inflammatory diseases.
Keywords
positron emission tomography (PET) - neurology - dementia - movement disorders - epilepsy
- brain tumors