FDG PET/CT Imaging in Mucormycosis: A Novel Approach for Early Detection and Disease Monitoring.

BACKGROUND To evaluate the role of FDG PET/CT in diagnosing and monitoring rhinocerebral mucormycosis (RCM) and its added value over conventional imaging. PATIENTS AND METHODS We conducted a prospective observational study of 47 adults with biopsy-confirmed rhinocerebral mucormycosis between July 2022 and September 2024. All patients underwent FDG PET/CT, and findings were compared with MRI/CT and correlated with microbiological or histopathologic results. PET/CT was used to assess disease extent, identify residual or recurrent disease, and monitor treatment response. RESULTS Of the 47 patients (43 men, 4 women; mean age 49.4 ± 12.2 y), 3 were imaged preoperatively and 44 postoperatively. PET/CT detected metabolically active disease in 35 patients, including 6 (12.8%) with lesions not well visualized on MRI/CT. Preoperative SUVmax was higher than postoperative (8.12 vs 6.12), reflecting disease burden reduction after surgery. PET/CT confirmed disease resolution in 12 patients who remained recurrence-free on follow-up. In 32 patients, PET/CT identified residual or recurrent disease, influencing further surgical and medical management. Representative images demonstrate PET/CT detection of active lesions missed on MRI/CT. CONCLUSIONS FDG PET/CT delineates disease extent, guides therapeutic decisions, and confirms treatment response. Incorporating PET/CT into routine clinical management may improve outcomes by enabling timely, targeted interventions.

• Publication year

  2025

• Venue

  Clinical Nuclear Medicine

• Publication date

  2025-08-20

• Fields of study

  Medicine

• Identifiers
  DOI 10.1097/RLU.0000000000006104PMID 40831013
• External record

  Open on Semantic Scholar

• Source metadata

  Semantic Scholar, PubMed

• No claims are published for this paper.

• No concepts are published for this paper.

• Epidemiology and Pathophysiology of COVID-19-Associated Mucormycosis: India Versus the Rest of the World

  2021cited by this paper
• The epidemiology and clinical manifestations of mucormycosis: a systematic review and meta-analysis of case reports.

  2019cited by this paper
• Diagnosis of an intestinal mucormycosis ‘fungus ball’ located with PET/CT with [18F] FDG-PET/CT

  2019cited by this paper
• A prospective multicenter study on mucormycosis in India: Epidemiology, diagnosis, and treatment.

  2018cited by this paper
• FDG PET/CT imaging in detecting and guiding management of invasive fungal infections: a retrospective comparison to conventional CT imaging

  2018cited by this paper
• Challenges in the diagnosis and treatment of mucormycosis.

  2018cited by this paper
• Mucormycosis: Battle with the Deadly Enemy over a Five-Year Period in India

  2018cited by this paper
• Potential role of 18F-FDG PET/CT in patients with fungal infections.

  2014cited by this paper
• Epidemiology of Mucormycosis in India

  2013cited by this paper
• Rhino-orbito-cerebral mucormycosis. A retrospective analysis of clinical features and treatment outcomes.

  2003cited by this paper

• No citing papers are available for this paper.