PET Scan of the Brain After TBI

In the 2019 Journal of Neurotrauma patients with cognitive symptoms after a single blunt trauma TBI, with normal CT and normal MRI, were given PET scans of the brain. PET scans measure the rate at which the brain’s fuel, glucose, is consumed – injured areas consuming less. They found that, compared to normal, the glucose uptake was significantly decreased in the bilateral pre-frontal area and significantly increased around the limbic system. This increased activity is likely a compensatory strategy by the brain to work around injured areas.