Coupling of porcine bone blood flow and metabolism in high-turnover bone disease measured by [(15)O]H(2)O and [(18)F]fluoride ion positron emission tomography.

Previously, we identified a parathyroid hormone-related high-turnover bone disease after gastrectomy in mini pigs. Dynamic [(18)F]fluoride ion positron emission tomography (PET) revealed that bone metabolism was significantly increased, but that bone blood flow derived from permeability-surface area product (PS product)-corrected K(1) values was not. Since bone blood flow and metabolism are coupled in normal bone tissues, we hypothesised that the capillary permeability and/or surface area might be altered in high-turnover bone disease. The "true" bone blood flow ( f(H2O)) was measured in vertebral bodies by dynamic [(15)O]H(2)O PET, followed by a 120-min dynamic [(18)F]fluoride ion PET study, 6 months after total gastrectomy (n=5) and compared with results in sham-operated animals (n=5). Estimates for bone blood flow based on PS-corrected K(1) values (f) and the net uptake of fluoride in bone tissue (K(i)), representing the bone metabolic activity, were calculated using standard compartmental modelling and non-linear fitting. Gastrectomy was followed by a significant elevation of K(i) and k(3) ( P<0.05), which was mainly caused by an increase of the fraction of bound tracer in tissue (P<0.01). In contrast, f(H2O), f, the single-pass extraction fraction of [(18)F]fluoride (E) and the volume of distribution (DV) of [(18)F]fluoride were not significantly different between groups. In both groups, a coupling of the mean f(H2O) and K(i) values was found, but the intercept with the y-axis was higher in high-turnover bone disease. It is concluded that in high-turnover bone disease following gastrectomy, the PS product for [(18)F]fluoride remains unchanged. Therefore, even in high-turnover bone diseases, [(18)F]fluoride ion PET can provide reliable blood flow estimates (f), as long as a proper PS product correction is applied. The increased bone metabolism in high-turnover bone disease after gastrectomy is mainly related to an up-regulation of the amount of ionic exchange of [(18)F]fluoride with the bone matrix, while tracer delivery remains unchanged.