Functional imaging in schizencephaly using [18F]fluoro-2-deoxy-D-glucose positron emission tomography (FDG PET) and single photon emission computed tomography with technetium-99m-hexamethyl-propyleneamine oxime (HMPAO-SPECT)

We analyzed interictal [F-18]fluoro-2-deoxy-D-glucose positron emission tomography (FGD-PET) and single photon emission computed tomography with technetium-99m-hexamethyl-propyleneamine oxime (HMPAO-SPECT) in a 23-year-old female with schizencephaly. She had epilepsy and mild left hemiparesis, but was otherwise developmentally normal. We found the glucose metabolism and perfusion of the wall of the schizencephalic cleft to be identical to those of normal cerebral cortex. The wall of the transcerebral clefts, which were observed to be lined by abnormally organized gray matter as a result of a migration disorder, demonstrated gray matter metabolic activity and perfusion. FDC-PET and HMPAO-SPECT were thus found to be a useful complement to magnetic resonance imaging for evaluating schizencephaly.