A Preliminary ¹⁸F-FDG-PET/MRI Study Shows Increased Vascular Inflammation in Moderate-to-Severe Atopic Dermatitis

Area of Science:

• Cardiovascular Imaging
• Dermatology
• Immunology

Background:

• Atopic dermatitis (AD) is linked to systemic immune activation and increased cardiovascular risk.
• Unlike psoriasis, active vascular inflammation in AD has not been extensively studied using advanced imaging techniques.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate aortic and carotid vascular inflammation in moderate-to-severe AD patients compared to healthy controls.
• Utilize 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose-positron emission tomography/magnetic resonance imaging (18F-FDG-PET/MRI) for precise inflammation assessment.

Main Methods:

• 27 patients with moderate-to-severe AD and 12 healthy controls underwent 18F-FDG-PET/MRI.
• Target-to-background ratio (TBR) was calculated in the aorta and carotid vessels to quantify inflammation.

Main Results:

• Patients with AD demonstrated elevated aortic and right carotid artery inflammation (TBR) compared to controls.
• AD severity correlated with C-reactive protein levels and carotid artery inflammation.
• Very severe AD cases showed significantly higher aortic and carotid inflammation than moderate/severe AD and controls.

Conclusions:

• This study is the first to demonstrate increased vascular inflammation in the aorta and carotids of patients with moderate-to-severe AD.
• Very severe AD is associated with substantially higher vascular inflammation.
• Further research with larger cohorts and pre/post-treatment evaluations is necessary to explore the modifiability of vascular inflammation in AD.