PET/CT > Normal Activity > Head and Neck > Larynx

Larynx

Normal larynx. There is intense but benign activity related to the patient's speaking at the time of FDG injection.

 

Laryngeal muscles normally demonstrate mild activity which is usually bilateral and symmetric. Active contraction of any skeletal muscle including the laryngeal muscle, particularly during the first half-hour following FDG injection, can result in increased activity. Therefore, efforts are made to isolate the patient from conversation during and after tracer injection. However, increased activity is not uncommonly seen within the laryngeal muscles likely due to their use prior to injection and during the short conversations with the technologist at the time of injection or immediately thereafter. Asymmetric activity can be seen with recurrent laryngeal nerve palsy and vocal cord paralysis, with greater activity on the unaffected side.