PET imaging in cardiovascular infections

Cardiovascular (CVS) infections are associated with high morbidity and mortality. Early diagnosis is crucial for adequate patient's management, as early treatment improves the prognosis. Hardly they are diagnosed on the basis of a single symptom, sign or diagnostic test, being a multidisciplinary discussion in addition to the integration of clinical signs, microbiology data and imaging data necessary in many cases. The application of multimodality imaging, including molecular imaging techniques has improved the sensitivity to detect infections involving heart valves and vessels and implanted cardiovascular devices while also allowing for early detection of septic emboli and metastatic infections before these become clinically apparent. In this chapter, we describe the role of WBC SPECT/CT and [18F] FDG PET/CT in most clinically relevant CVS infections including dedicated imaging acquisition protocols, specific imaging reading and interpretations criteria, emphasizing the need of a specific reference framework within a Cardiovascular Multidisciplinary Team Approach to select the best test or combination of tests for each specific clinical situation.