| Title: |
Prognostic Value of Cranial Arteries Involvement on 18F-FDG PET/CT at Giant Cell Arteritis Diagnosis in a Multicenter Cohort |
| Authors: |
Bardy, Rachel; Detournay, Estelle; Guedon, Alexis F.; Mekinian, Arsène; Morard, Marie; Kraeber-Bodéré, Françoise; Jamet, Bastien; Besson, Florent L.; Espitia, Olivier |
| Source: |
Clinical Nuclear Medicine ; ISSN 0363-9762 1536-0229 |
| Publisher Information: |
Ovid Technologies (Wolters Kluwer Health) |
| Publication Year: |
2026 |
| Description: |
Background: The aim of this study was to assess the prognostic value of 18 F-FDG PET/CT-based features performed at the diagnosis of giant cell arteritis (GCA) for the risk of relapse. Patients and Methods: 18 F-FDG PET/CT was performed in patients with GCA between 2014 and 2024 before 10 days of corticosteroid therapy. Visual scores were assessed: TVS, PETVAS, “extended” PETVAS with 17 segments (PETVAS51), cephalic score “C-VAS” dedicated to the branches of the external carotid artery, and global score “G-VAS” combining all the previous territories. Maximum standardized uptake values (SUVmax) and target-to-background ratios (TBR) normalized to liver or circulating blood pool were also collected. Relapse was defined by the occurrence of suggestive clinical, biological, or imaging events. Survival analyses (Kaplan–Meier) and Cox models adjusted for age, sex, and camera type (analog or digital) were used to identify prognostic factors for relapse. Results: Seventy-six patients were included, 41% of them relapsed after a median follow-up of 14 months. None of the conventional scores (TVS, PETVAS, PETVAS 51) or semiquantitative parameters predicted relapse. In contrast, the G-VAS >45 and C-VAS >8 were significantly associated with relapse in univariate analysis [HR = 2.64 (95% CI: 1.00; 6.98), P = 0.043 and 3.48 (1.30; 9.29), P = 0.0084, respectively]. Only a C-VAS score >8 was an independent predictor of prompt relapses in multivariate analysis [HR = 3.31 (1.16–9.38)]. Conclusions: In patients with GCA, increased uptake of the cephalic branches of the external carotid artery on initial 18 F-FDG PET/CT was an independent prognostic factor for relapse. |
| Document Type: |
article in journal/newspaper |
| Language: |
English |
| DOI: |
10.1097/rlu.0000000000006427 |
| DOI: |
10.1097/RLU.0000000000006427 |
| Availability: |
https://doi.org/10.1097/rlu.0000000000006427; https://journals.lww.com/10.1097/RLU.0000000000006427 |
| Accession Number: |
edsbas.A1F182A6 |
| Database: |
BASE |