Differential diagnosis of hepatic diseases with diffuse hepatic uptake increased in ¹⁸F-FDG PET/CT imaging

Hepatic uptake is often used as the reference standard for the evaluation of image quality, therapeutic efficiency and diagnosis of diseases in ¹⁸F-fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) PET/CT imaging. However, the liver shows diffuse, homogeneous or heterogeneous high ¹⁸F-FDG uptake sometimes, called "hepatic superscan". Except for biologic and technical factors, many diffuse hepatic parenchymal diseases and malignancies may increased the uptake of ¹⁸F-FDG by the liver. This paper reviews this in order to widen the view in clinical differential diagnosis.