Assessment of Myocardial Viability Using Nuclear Medicine Imaging in Dextrocardia.

Imaging of dextrocardia in humans requires an understanding of the orientation of the heart chambers and walls. There are many types of cardiac malpositioning, such as dextrocardia (with or without situs inversus), mesocardia, and levocardia. Myocardial perfusion scintigraphy of dextrocardia has been explained in case reports and imaging atlases; however, myocardial viability assessment using nuclear medicine imaging techniques is less documented in the literature. Methods: In 2 cases of dextrocardia with situs inversus and 1 case of mesocardia, myocardial viability was assessed using 99mTc-sestamibi rest perfusion scintigraphy and 18F-FDG PET. Cardiac SPECT images of dextrocardia with situs inversus were acquired using the feet-first supine position with a 180° arc from left anterior oblique to right posterior oblique, whereas a right-lateral-to-left-lateral arc was used for mesocardia. The processing and reconstruction were done by entering the dataset for the feet-first supine position and repeating after entering the dataset for the feet-first prone position. The 2 sets of reconstructed images were compared for orientation of walls and cardiac chambers. Results: The first processing, using the feet-first supine position, revealed an interchanged septum and lateral wall in reconstructed images of dextrocardia with situs inversus. This interchange was corrected by changing the position to prone during processing of the rest perfusion and PET raw data. The display of cardiac slices in various axes matched the conventional nomenclature for the septum and lateral wall, leading to easy interpretation. However, this change was not required in the mesocardia, for which the location of the heart chambers was not interchanged. Conclusion: Because the acquisition protocol for SPECT is a semicircular orbit, the various types of dextrocardia require careful selection of the arc, with the patient positioning kept feet-first supine. Processing and reconstruction of data by changing the patient position to prone was found to be most useful method of matching the septum and lateral wall orientation for interpretation of images.

Tc-99m Ethylenedicysteine and Tc-99m Dimercaptosuccinic Acid Scintigraphy-Comparison of the Two for Detection of Scarring and Differential Cortical Function.

CONTEXT: The differential cortical function obtained by Tc-99m EC is comparable to that of Tc-99m DMSA. However, identification of scars on Tc-99m EC images needs to be studied. AIMS: The aim of the study is to evaluate role of Tc-99m EC for detection of scarring and differential cortical function by comparing with Tc-99m DMSA. SETTINGS AND DESIGN: Prospective observational study of recurrent UTI; minimum 6 weeks after acute episode; when urine examination is negative for pus cells. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Forty-seven children with normal positioned kidneys underwent Tc-99m EC and DMSA scintigraphy. The DRF and cortical phase images of both studies in the same image matrix size were evaluated by two independent observers for scarring; Tc-99m DMSA was considered as the gold standard. STATISTICAL ANALYSIS USED: MS Excel 2007 and GraphPad Instat V3.1 and ROC analysis. RESULTS: There was no significant difference in the detection of scarring using two studies with Cohen's kappa coefficient (κ) 0.932. The sensitivity and specificity of Tc-99m EC for detection of scarring was 98.75% and 99.15%, respectively. There was good agreement between the differential cortical function calculated using two studies. CONCLUSIONS: The summed Tc-99m EC images with an acceptable high image contrast allow detection of cortical scarring in patients with normal kidney positions. It is an excellent single-modality comprehensive investigational agent for renal parenchymal defects, function, and excretion evaluation with the added advantages of lower cost, convenience, and low radiation exposure to the child.