Brain 18F-FDG template using images from a new brain-dedicated positron emission tomography scanner

Abstract

18 F-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography ( 18 F-FDG-PET) may be a useful tool as a biomarker of neurodegeneration. However, commercial brain templates may differ substantially from the PET images generated in new scanners in terms of resolution. We aimed to build an 18 F-FDG-PET image template using images acquired in a brain-dedicated PET to enable normalization optimization. A total of 167 patients underwent an 18 F-FDG-PET study on a brain-dedicated PET system. The images were automatically co-registered in Pmod 4.1, followed by iterative deformable registration in ANTs (Advanced Normalization Tools) to build the template. We obtained an 18 F-FDG-PET brain template with 1-mm 3 voxels and a 268 x 268 x 152 matrix to use as a reference for PET image normalization. In addition, we generated a map with 66 regions of interest (ROIs) manually adapted from the Automated Anatomical Labeling (AAL) ROI map for quantification of the normalized images and a mask to exclude extra-parenchymal regions. The development of a brain template with images acquired on the dedicated brain PET is of great utility for application in new scanners with improved resolution.