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Seasonal variation in the effect of constant ambient temperature of 24°C in reducing FDG uptake by brown adipose tissue in children

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European Journal of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Purpose

It has been shown that warming patients prior to and during 18F-FDG uptake by controlling the room temperature can decrease uptake by brown adipose tissue (BAT). The aim of this study is to determine if this effect is subject to seasonal variation.

Methods

A retrospective review was conducted of all patients referred for whole-body 18F-FDG PET between December 2006 and December 2008. After December 2007, all patients were kept in the PET injection room at a constant 24°C for 30 min before and until 1 h following FDG administration. Patients over 22 years of age and those who received pre-medication known to reduce FDG uptake by BAT were excluded. One hundred and three patients were warmed to 24°C prior to scanning. The number of patients showing uptake by BAT in this group was compared to a control group of 99 patients who underwent PET prior to December 2007 when the injection room temperature was 21°C.

Results

Uptake by BAT occurred in 9% of studies performed after patient warming (24°C), compared to 27% of studies performed on the control group (21°C) (p < 0.00001). The effect of warming on decreasing FDG accumulation in BAT was statistically significant in the winter (p < 0.005) and summer (p < 0.001). However, in the spring and autumn, though the effect of warming on decreasing FDG accumulation in BAT was evident, it was not statistically significant (p > 0.05).

Conclusion

Maintaining room temperature at a constant 24°C for 30 min prior to and 1 h after IV tracer administration significantly decreases FDG uptake by BAT in children. This effect is greatest in the summer and winter.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Radiology, Division of Nuclear Medicine/PET, Children’s Hospital Boston, Harvard Medical School, 300 Longwood Avenue, Boston, MA, 02115, USA

    Frederic H. Fahey, Stephen Laffin, Royal Davis, S. Ted Treves, Frederick D. Grant & Laura A. Drubach

  2. Department of Imaging, Division of Nuclear Medicine, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Harvard Medical School, 44 Binney Street, Boston, MA, 02115, USA

    Katherine A. Zukotynski

Authors
  1. Katherine A. Zukotynski
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  2. Frederic H. Fahey
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  3. Stephen Laffin
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  4. Royal Davis
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  5. S. Ted Treves
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  6. Frederick D. Grant
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  7. Laura A. Drubach
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Correspondence to Laura A. Drubach.

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Zukotynski, K.A., Fahey, F.H., Laffin, S. et al. Seasonal variation in the effect of constant ambient temperature of 24°C in reducing FDG uptake by brown adipose tissue in children. Eur J Nucl Med Mol Imaging 37, 1854–1860 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00259-010-1485-2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00259-010-1485-2

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