title: Sestamibi scintigraphy for parathyroid localisation: a reminder of the dangers of false positives.
abstract: Surgical parathyroidectomy is the only curative treatment for primary hyperparathyroidism. As minimally invasive parathyroidectomy increases in popularity, so does reliance on preoperative parathyroid localisation techniques. One such technique is sestamibi scintigraphy. We report a case of false-positive sestamibi scintigraphy caused by follicular variant of papillary thyroid carcinoma. Subsequent completion thyroidectomy was not possible due to widespread postoperative fibrosis. This case, therefore, highlights the potential dangers of false-positive results due to thyroid carcinoma and encourages surgeons to consider this possibility when faced with intrathyroidal or otherwise ambiguous parathyroid localisation results.
authors.affiliation: St George's Healthcare NHS Trust, London, UK.
authors.forename: Katherine Lisa
authors.initials: KL
authors.lastname: Whitcroft
authors.forename: Anup
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Sharma
mesh_terms: D000236:Adenoma / Q000150:complications / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000601:surgery; D000368:Aged; D002277:Carcinoma / Q000150:complications / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000601:surgery; D002291:Carcinoma, Papillary; D003951:Diagnostic Errors; D005189:False Positive Reactions; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D049950:Hyperparathyroidism, Primary / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000209:etiology / Q000601:surgery; D010280:Parathyroid Glands / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D010282:Parathyroid Neoplasms / Q000150:complications / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000601:surgery; D016105:Parathyroidectomy; D011877:Radionuclide Imaging; D019275:Radiopharmaceuticals; D017256:Technetium Tc 99m Sestamibi; D000077273:Thyroid Cancer, Papillary; D013964:Thyroid Neoplasms / Q000150:complications / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000601:surgery; D013965:Thyroidectomy
chemical_list: D019275:Radiopharmaceuticals; D017256:Technetium Tc 99m Sestamibi