How to get 133Xe into solution for blood flow studies: a technical note with an emphasis on neurosurgical patients.
OBJECTIVE
133Xe has been widely used for measuring blood flow in various organs. Because an injectable solution of 133Xe is not commercially available, a technique is presented that allows both the production of the radiopharmaceutical and the drawing of individualized patient doses.


METHODS
A system was designed to crush ampoules of 133Xe gas inside a sealed cylinder containing sodium chloride injection 0.9%.


RESULTS
133Xe ampoules of different sizes and filled with different activities were crushed within the system. The steel cylinder shielded 98% of the radiation. With 34 GBq 133Xe a total of 20 studies of cerebral blood flow were performed. No bacteriological contamination of the drawn doses was detected.


CONCLUSIONS
The crusher system allows the efficient and safe production of an injectable solution of 133Xe with sodium chloride 0.9%.
Oertel
Matthias F
MF
Departments of aNeurosurgery bNuclear Medicine, University Hospital Giessen, Germany. matthias.oertel@neuro.med.uni-giessen.de
Preiss
Martin
M
Puille
Maximilian
M
Bauer
Richard
R
D001783:Blood Flow Velocity; D007267:Injections / Q000295:instrumentation* / Q000379:methods*; D007553:Isotope Labeling / Q000379:methods*; D019635:Neurosurgical Procedures / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods; D012965:Sodium Chloride / Q000737:chemistry; D012996:Solutions; D013594:Syringes; D014980:Xenon Radioisotopes / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000737:chemistry*
D012996:Solutions; D014980:Xenon Radioisotopes; D012965:Sodium Chloride