Mild traumatic brain injury induced by primary blast overpressure produces dynamic regional changes in [¹⁸F]FDG uptake

Changes in ¹⁸F-fluorodeoxyglucose ([¹⁸F]FDG) measured by positron emission tomography (PET) can be used for the noninvasive detection of metabolic dysfunction following mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI). This study examined the time course of metabolic changes induced by primary blast injury by measuring regional [¹⁸F]FDG uptake. Adult, male rats were exposed to blast overpressure (15 psi) or sham injury, and [¹⁸F]FDG uptake was measured before injury and again at 1–3 h and 7 days post-injury, using both volume-of-interest (VOI) and voxel-based analysis. VOI analysis revealed significantly increased [¹⁸F]FDG uptake in corpus callosum and amygdala at both 1–3 h and 7 days following blast, while a transient decrease in uptake was observed in the midbrain at 1–3 h only. Voxel-based analysis revealed similar significant differences in uptake between sham and blast-injured rats at both time points. At 1–3 h post-injury, clusters of increased uptake were found in the amygdala, somatosensory cortex, and corpus callosum, while regions of decreased uptake were observed in midbrain structures (inferior colliculus, ventrolateral tegmental area) and dorsal auditory cortex. At day 7, a region of increased uptake in blast-injured rats was found in a cluster centered on the cortex-amygdala transition zone, while no regions of decreased uptake were observed. These results suggest that a relatively mild primary blast injury results in altered brain metabolism in multiple brain regions and that post-injury time of assessment is an important factor in observing regional changes in [¹⁸F]FDG uptake.