Impact of patient motion on myocardial perfusion SPECT diagnostic integrity: Part 2.
OBJECTIVE
Advances in 99mTc-based radiopharmaceuticals and multiple-detector gantries have the potential to increase the significance of patient motion on the diagnostic integrity of myocardial perfusion SPECT acquisitions.


METHODS
An experimental study was used to evaluate the effect of various patient motions on the diagnostic integrity of myocardial perfusion SPECT data using 522 motion simulations generated from a technically and diagnostically normal dataset.


RESULTS
Of studies with induced motion, 21.7% of simulated motion demonstrated motion-induced artifacts. Abrupt motion resulted in artifacts for 52.6% of studies, whereas bounce motion resulted in artifacts in 6.8% of studies. The locations where motion resulted in the most studies with artifacts were at 45 degrees (36.1%) and 75 degrees (32.4%). No statistical difference was demonstrated between single, dual-, and triple-head configurations.


CONCLUSIONS
Combining these results with those of the clinical evaluation of incidence indicates that patient motion during 99mTc-based myocardial perfusion SPECT studies is a potential source of false-positive findings for coronary artery disease. There is a 7.1% probability that myocardial perfusion SPECT studies performed at the 3 sites investigated will contain a motion-induced artifact. Fully realized, this potential results in decreased test specificity and unfavorable cost and consequence outcomes.
Wheat
Janelle M
JM
School of Clinical Sciences, Charles Sturt University, Wagga Wagga, New South Wales, Australia. jwheat@csu.edu.au
Currie
Geoffrey M
GM
D016477:Artifacts; D003198:Computer Simulation; D003324:Coronary Artery Disease / Q000175:diagnosis*; D003326:Coronary Circulation / Q000502:physiology*; D005189:False Positive Reactions; D006321:Heart / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D006801:Humans; D009038:Motion; D019275:Radiopharmaceuticals; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D013667:Technetium; D015899:Tomography, Emission-Computed, Single-Photon / Q000379:methods*
D019275:Radiopharmaceuticals; D013667:Technetium