Myocardial perfusion abnormalities in asymptomatic type 2 diabetic patients.

Objective: The prevalence of coronary artery disease (CAD) is high in patients with diabetes. Because ischemia and infarction are often silent in diabetic patients, diagnosis of CAD occurs inevitably late. It is essential to identify the presence of CAD in diabetic patients to start early treatment.

Regional cerebral blood flow in patients with sickle cell disease: study with single photon emission computed tomography.

Objective: Neurological complications have been reported in patients with sickle-cell disease (SCD) using positron emission tomography (PET), magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), and computed tomography (CT), but not with single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT). The objective of this study was to investigate brain perfusion in the patients with SCD using SPECT after technetium-99m hexamethylpropylene amine oxime (99mTc-HMPAO), was administered and compare the findings with those of demography, physical examination, MRI and hematological profile.

Methods: The study involved 21 patients (12 males, 9 females, age at study 8-45 years) who were known to be having SCD for a duration of at least 5 years.

Dextrose solutions yield radiochemical impurities: the "sweet" scans.

Objective: If additional chemicals are inadvertently introduced in the preparation of radiopharmaceutical kits, radiochemical impurities may be formed. We report our experience with erroneously diluting (99m)Tc-pertechnetate eluate with 5% dextrose solution rather than normal saline during the preparation of (99m)Tc-tetrofosmin, (99m)Tc-methylene diphosphonate (MDP), (99m)Tc-stannous colloid, and (99m)Tc-mebrofenin.

Methods: Scintigrams for 3 of the 4 radiochemicals unintentionally prepared with 5% dextrose were found to have an altered biodistribution.