E. Lazzeri, A. Signore, P.A. Erba, N. Prandini, A. Versari, G. D’Errico, G. Mariani (editors): Radionuclide Imaging of Infection and Inflammation: A Pictorial Case-Based Atlas

Excerpt

Inflammation and infection are still the main causes of morbidity and mortality in the world, in spite of the lower epidemiological incidence in most developed countries. Therefore, even if today issues such as cancer, cardiovascular and cerebrovascular events and degenerative diseases receive more attention, strong demand for diagnostic imaging still remains in this field. Important clinical questions relate not only to the diagnosis of disease and the evaluation of complications, but also to a new epidemiological scenario characterized by a growing rate of chronic inflammatory diseases. In this continuously increasing group of patients, it is mandatory to define the presence of an “active” pathological condition as the basis for an effective therapeutic strategy. In this context, where important answers may be given by radiography, ultrasonography, CT and MRI, nuclear medicine techniques constitute an irreplaceable modality, that may sometimes be primary but more frequently complementary, for the diagnose of the presence of infection/inflammation as well as for evaluation of response to therapy. …