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Positron emission tomographic findings in a tuberculous brain abscess

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Abstract

Several case reports and studies have described the positron emission tomographic (PET) findings of intracranial tuberculomas and bacterial brain abscesses. However, to our knowledge, the PET pattern of a tuberculous brain abscess has not been previously described. We report the case of a diabetic heavy drinker with a left parietal tuberculous abscess. 18F-fluoro-2-deoxyglucose (FDG)-PET scans showed intense FDG uptake at the abscess periphery, where contrast enhancement was observed on a magnetic resonance image. FDG uptake was reduced within the abscess cavity and in the adjacent cerebral cortex. The possibility of a tuberculous brain abscess should be considered when FDG accumulates at the periphery of a ring-enhancing lesion in a chronically ill or immunocompromised patient.

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Correspondence to Jae-Kyu Roh.

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Kang, K., Lim, I. & Roh, JK. Positron emission tomographic findings in a tuberculous brain abscess. Ann Nucl Med 21, 303–306 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12149-007-0023-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12149-007-0023-1

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