Positron emission tomography (PET): Basic principles

Abstract

Single-photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) and positron emission tomography (PET) are three-dimensional (3D) techniques provided by nuclear imaging to functionally map radiotracer uptake distributed in the human body. SPECT systems have been described previously; PET imaging is the main topic of the present chapter. The radiopharmaceuticals of PET provide more insights into the metabolic and molecular processes of the disease. This in turn has made PET a molecular imaging technique that examines biochemical processes that take place at the molecular level [1]. © 2011 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg.