Myocardial scintigraphy with 99mTc-pyrophosphate in patients with unstable angina pectoris.
A total of 400 patients, aged 25-82 years, admitted to the Coronary Care Unit due to clinical suspicion of acute myocardial infarction, were examined with 10 mCi 99mTc labelled to pyrophosphate. The examinations were carried out 4-120 hours post onset of symptoms, with a mobile gamma camera. Scintigrams were evaluated with regard to presence, localization and intensity of an uptake. Among 249 patients with a verified acute myocardial infarction, uptake was found in 237. Sixty-two of 85 patients with unstable angina showed a diffuse uptake with low intensity. Scintigraphy could not be used as a prognostic index of which patients would later develop an infarct. However, the scintigraphic pattern was useful as an aid in the differential diagnosis between acute myocardial infarction and unstable angina.
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000787:Angina Pectoris / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D011756:Diphosphates; D005260:Female; D006321:Heart / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009203:Myocardial Infarction / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D011379:Prognosis; D011877:Radionuclide Imaging; D013667:Technetium
D011756:Diphosphates; D013667:Technetium