Post-synchronized scintigraphic data to estimate antral motility

Nucl Med Commun. 2001 Mar;22(3):291-303. doi: 10.1097/00006231-200103000-00006.

Abstract

We evaluated an improved dynamic antral scintigraphy (DAS) technique, without any frequency filtering or computation of an autocorrelation function. This DAS was performed in 15 consecutive patients and 10 healthy volunteers. Antral frequency was first estimated and was given as an input parameter to compute phase and amplitude values in each antral pixel. Motility indices were calculated by multiplying the frequency by a normalized amplitude in the whole antrum. In addition, a gastric emptying (GE) test was performed. Only 10 patients had a delayed GE when using a cut-off value of the mean of half emptying time (T +2SD) obtained in controls. Antral frequencies were significantly increased but motility indices were significantly lower in patients than in controls. These results in patients were accounted for by a retention of food in the antrum. Therefore, amplitude normalization by the antral mean count activity of each set of data was essential for discriminating between patients and controls and normalized indices appeared early predictors of hypomotility in patients with normal GE. This improved DAS technique should be a useful tool to assess antral dysmotility noninvasively, and may be of physiological and clinical interest.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Adult
  • Female
  • Gastric Emptying / physiology*
  • Gastrointestinal Diseases / diagnostic imaging*
  • Gastrointestinal Diseases / physiopathology*
  • Gastrointestinal Motility*
  • Humans
  • Image Processing, Computer-Assisted
  • Male
  • Muscle Contraction
  • Pyloric Antrum / physiology*
  • Pyloric Antrum / physiopathology
  • Radionuclide Imaging
  • Radiopharmaceuticals
  • Reference Values
  • Reproducibility of Results
  • Technetium Tc 99m Sulfur Colloid
  • Time Factors

Substances

  • Radiopharmaceuticals
  • Technetium Tc 99m Sulfur Colloid