“Image of the Year” Unveiled

The Society of Nuclear Medicine has picked its 2011 Image of the Year, published in the Journal of Nuclear Medicine’s August 1 edition.

The image, courtesy of radiologists at Stanford University and Hospital Mãe de Deus in Brazil, show PET/CT (positron emission tomography/computed tomography) in action. Peter Herscovitch, MD, who chairs the society’s Scientific Program Committee, said the image highlights the ability of PET/CT plus newly-approved 18F-sodium fluoride bone imaging agent to identify bone inflammation in patients who have received spinal fixation hardware implants.

The image (below) rose to the top of more than 1,800 studies presented over the course of four days during the society’s recent annual meeting in San Antonio, Texas.