HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS		QUICK SEARCH:   [advanced] Author: Keyword(s): Year:  Vol:  Page:

This Article Full Text Full Text (PDF) Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Ziessman, H. A. Articles by Tall, J. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Ziessman, H. A. Articles by Tall, J.

Standardization and Quantification of Radionuclide Solid Gastric-Emptying Studies

¹ Division of Nuclear Medicine, Department of Radiology, Johns Hopkins Medical Institute, Baltimore, Maryland
² Children’s Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts
³ Washington Hospital Center, Washington, DC

The purposes of this investigation were to standardize and validate a simple quantitative method for performing radionuclide solid gastric emptying that can be used for any dual-head -camera and to establish reference values. Methods: After eating a solid meal (egg sandwich) labeled with a radionuclide, 20 healthy volunteers (9 male, 11 female) underwent a 90-min gastric-emptying study performed with a triple-head -camera. Two sets of 3 simultaneous projections were acquired sequentially for 30 s each: anterior, right posterior oblique (RPO), left posterior oblique (LPO), posterior, left anterior oblique (LAO), and right anterior oblique (RAO), and this sequence was repeated continuously for 90 min. Time–activity curves were generated using a gastric region of interest for each of the views as well as the conjugate-view geometric mean (GM) data for the anterior/posterior, LAO/RPO, and RAO/LPO combinations. Quantitative parameters were determined: percentage gastric emptying (%GE) at 90 min, half-time (min) based on an exponential fit, and clearance rate (%/min) based on a linear fit. Reference values were determined on the basis of a 95% confidence interval of the t distribution. The results were statistically analyzed and compared. Results: The %GE reference values were greater for the anterior/posterior GM (33%) than for the LAO (31%) and anterior (30%) GMs. The 3 %GE GM methods, the 3 exponential-fit GM methods, and the 3 linear-fit GM methods had high correlation coefficients (r 0.874), and with only a single exception, there was no statistical difference among them. The LAO method and LAO/RPO GM mean method correlated strongly (r = 0.900) and had similar mean values (52% vs. 51%) and reference values (29% vs. 30%). All 3 methods of GM quantification also correlated strongly, and there was no significant difference among them. Conclusion: We have described and validated a simple method for radionuclide solid gastric emptying that can be used with a dual-head -camera. We recommend the anterior/posterior GM method and have established reference values (33%).

Key Words: gastric emptying • ^99mTc-sulfur colloid • stomach • gastroparesis

This article has been cited by other articles:

				H. A. Ziessman, D. V. Bonta, S. Goetze, and W. J. Ravich Experience with a Simplified, Standardized 4-Hour Gastric-Emptying Protocol J. Nucl. Med., April 1, 2007; 48(4): 568 - 572. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]