Analysis of cerebral glucose metabolism following experimental subarachnoid hemorrhage over 7 days

Little is known about changes in brain metabolism following SAH, possibly leading towards secondary brain damage. Despite sustained progress in the last decade, analysis of in vivo acquired data still remains challenging. The present interdisciplinary study uses a semi-automated data analysis tool analyzing imaging data independently from the administrated radiotracer. The uptake of 2-[(18)F]Fluoro-2-deoxy-glucose ([(18)F]FDG) was evaluated in different brain regions in 14 male Sprague–Dawley rats, randomized into two groups: (1) SAH induced by the endovascular filament model and (2) sham operated controls. Serial [(18)F]FDG-PET measurements were carried out. Quantitative image analysis was performed by uptake ratio using a self-developed MRI-template based data analysis tool. SAH animals showed significantly higher [(18)F]FDG accumulation in gray matter, neocortex and olfactory system as compared to animals of the sham group, while white matter and basal forebrain region showed significant reduced tracer accumulation in SAH animals. All significant metabolic changes were visualized from 3 h, over 24 h (day 1), day 4 and day 7 following SAH/sham operation. This [(18)F]FDG-PET study provides important insights into glucose metabolism alterations following SAH—for the first time in different brain regions and up to day 7 during course of disease.