[en] A model has been designed based on the assumptions of a steady state for glucose consumption, a first-order equilibration of the free ¹⁴C-DG pool in the tissue with the plasma level, and relative rates of phosphorylation of ¹⁴C-DG and glucose determined by their kinetic constants for hexokinase reaction. Using an operational equation based on this model, the metabolic rates of glucose are calculated in various regions of brain (utilizing brain slices and autoradiography). ¹⁴C is a beta emitter and therefore not suitable for noninvasive imaging in man. With the synthesis of ¹⁸F-2-deoxy-2-fluoro-D-glucose (¹⁸F-DG) all of the requirements for a suitable radiopharmaceutical for the determination of local cerebral metabolism have been met. This agent behaves very similarly to ¹⁴C-DG and therefore, using the above described model and emission tomography, it has become possible to measure regional cerebral metabolism for the first time in man