Pituitary microadenomas: a PET study.

Twenty cases of surgically verified pituitary microadenoma (17 with Cushing disease and three with acromegaly) were studied with positron emission tomography (PET) with use of fluorine-18-2-fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG). The diagnostic results were compared with those of other modalities, namely, computed tomography (CT), magnetic resonance (MR) imaging, and, in the cases of Cushing disease, simultaneous bilateral inferior petrosal sinus sampling (SIPS). The PET results showed 12 positive readings and one questionable reading, compared with seven positive readings and one questionable reading for CT (18 cases studied) and 13 positive and two questionable MR imaging readings. PET complemented MR imaging, in the sense that five of the positive PET readings were negative or questionable at MR imaging. PET studies of 20 healthy control subjects showed no false-positive cases, whereas other studies of healthy subjects with contrast material-enhanced CT and MR imaging have yielded, respectively, 20% and 15% positive readings, with findings suggestive of silent or occult adenomas.