FDG-PET in Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease: Analysis of clinical-PET correlation

To assess the relationship between clinical pattern and cerebral glucose metabolism on [18F]fluoro-2-deoxy-D-glucose positron emission tomography (FDG-PET) in Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD).

Predefined clinical signs (ataxia, visual, pyramidal, myoclonus, limb apraxia, limb dystonia, sensory, parkinsonism, and corticobasal syndrome [CBS]) and FDG-PET data were assessed in consecutive CJD patients. Two types of statistical parametric mapping (SPM) analyses, using stringent level of significance p < 0.001 and extent threshold of 100 voxels, were performed: one comparing CJD patients presenting specific sign against CJD patients without this specific sign (inter-CJD analysis), and one comparing CJD patients with specific sign against 18 healthy controls (CJD-control analysis).

Fifteen CJD patients (11 probable and two histologically proven sporadic and two genetic CJD) were analyzed. CJD-control analysis of the entire CJD group showed lateralized frontal and parietal hypometabolism. When analyzing clinical CJD subgroups, inter-CJD analyses showed hypometabolism in more restricted areas than on CJD-control analyses. For CJD patients presenting with ataxia, visual signs and CBS (and CBS-associated signs), additional hypometabolic areas probably related to the specific signs were identified: pons and middle cerebellar peduncles in patients with ataxia; occipital cortex in patients with visual signs; and prerolandic and lateral parietal cortex in patients with CBS. For pyramidal signs, sensory loss, and parkinsonism, no abnormalities in brain areas typically involved in these signs were observed.

In addition to lateralized frontal and parietal hypometabolism previously reported in CJD and observed here, hypometabolism in brain areas related to some specific signs (i.e. ataxia, visual signs, and CBS) is also seen.