Evidence map›Paper›PMID 39177939›Full record

ArticleEJNMMI physics2024

From SPECT/CT towards absolute quantification? - the case of unilateral condylar hyperplasia of the mandible.

Stijn De Schepper, Gopinath Gnanasegaran, Wouter De Vos, Elke Van de Casteele, John C Dickson, Tim Van den Wyngaert

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in EJNMMI physics, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 4 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
4citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

4 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Review
  2. Quantitative SPECT/CT: Technique and Clinical Applications.Recent results in cancer research. Fortschritte der Krebsforschung. Progres dans les recherches sur le cancer · 2026
    Review
  3. Article
  4. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

6 authors.

Stijn De SchepperDepartment of Nuclear Medicine, Antwerp University Hospital, Drie Eikenstraat 655, Edegem, 2650, Belgium. stijn.deschepper@uza.be.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0003-4194-0974
Gopinath GnanasegaranDepartment of Nuclear Medicine, Royal Free London NHS, London, UK.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-4617-9013
Wouter De VosDepartment of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Antwerp University Hospital, Antwerp, Belgium.
Elke Van de CasteeleDepartment of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Antwerp University Hospital, Antwerp, Belgium.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0003-0395-3002
John C DicksonInstitute of Nuclear Medicine, University College of London Hospitals NHS, London, UK.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-1793-3822
Tim Van den WyngaertDepartment of Nuclear Medicine, Antwerp University Hospital, Drie Eikenstraat 655, Edegem, 2650, Belgium.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-0320-9075

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundUnilateral condylar hyperplasia (UCH) of the mandible is a rare condition characterized by asymmetric growth of the mandibular condyles. Bone scintigraphy with SPECT(/CT) is commonly used to diagnose UCH and guide treatment. Still, varying results have been reported using the traditional threshold of 55%:45% in relative tracer uptake. While absolute quantification of uptake on SPECT/CT could improve results, optimal correction and reconstruction settings are currently unknown.

methodsThree anthropomorphic phantoms representing UCH were developed from patient CT volumes and produced using 3D printing technology. Fillable spherical inserts of different sizes (Ø: 8-15 mm) were placed in the condylar positions representing symmetrical and asymmetrical distributions. Recovery coefficients were determined for SPECT/CT using various reconstruction corrections, including attenuation and scatter correction (ACSC), resolution modeling (RM), and partial volume correction (PVC) using phantom measurements. Uptake ratios between condyles and condyle to clivus were evaluated. Finally, the impact of these correction techniques on absolute activity and diagnostic accuracy was assessed in a retrospective patient cohort for the diagnostic threshold of 55%:45%.

resultsThe activity was only partially recovered in all spherical inserts (range: 22.5-64.9%). However, RM improved relative recovery by 20.2-62.3% compared to ACSC. In the symmetric phantoms, the 95% confidence interval (CI) of condyle ratios included the diagnostic threshold (57.6%:42.4%) for UCH when using ACSC potentially leading to false positives, but not for ACSCRM datasets. Partial volume corrections coefficients from the NEMA IQ phantom was positionally dependent, with improvements seen performing PVC using coefficients derived from anthropomorphic phantoms. Retrospective application in a patient cohort showed only a weak linear correlation (R²: 0.25-0.67) and large limits of agreement (9.6-12.5%) between different reconstructions. Up to 44% of patients were reclassified using the 55%:45% threshold. Using clinical outcome data, ACSCRM had highest sensitivity (91%; 95% CI 59-100%) and specificity (66%; 95% CI 47-81%), significantly improving specificity (P = 0.038).

conclusionsAnthropomorphic phantoms were shown to be essential in determining optimal settings for acquisition, reconstruction, and analysis. SPECT/CT reconstructions with attenuation and scatter correction and resolution modeling are recommended and could improve specificity when using the 55%:45% threshold to assess condylar growth.

Indexed as

3D printingMandiblePhantomQuantitative SPECT/CTRecovery coefficientUnilateral condylar hyperplasia

Identifiers

PMID39177939
PMCPMC11343952

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.