title: Clinical significance of reverse redistribution on technetium-99m tetrofosmin single-photon emission computed tomography: an 18-month follow-up study.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The clinical and prognostic significance of reverse redistribution on technetium-99m (99mTc) single-photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) is unclear.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To determine outcomes of chest pain patients showing reverse redistribution after99mTc tetrofosmin SPECT versus SPECT showing no reverse redistribution.
  
  
  METHODS
  Patient outcomes (death, nonfatal myocardial infarction, coronary artery bypass grafting and percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty) within 18 months after99mTc tetrofosmin SPECT were determined in two populations of ambulatory patients, most of whom had been evaluated because of chest pain: a population of 57 patients whose SPECT images showed reverse redistribution without reversible or fixed defects, versus a control population of 98 patients whose SPECT images were normal (no reverse redistribution, no reversible defects, no fixed defects).
  
  
  RESULTS
  Stepwise logistic regression analysis showed that the population of patients with reverse redistribution did not have a worse 18-month outcome in comparison with the control population of patients without reverse redistribution (3.5% versus 9.2%, respectively; p=0.15 corrected for age and gender).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Reverse redistribution on99mTc tetrofosmin SPECT does not appear to be an unfavourable prognostic factor in ambulatory chest pain patients.
authors.forename: B M
authors.initials: BM
authors.lastname: Swinkels
authors.forename: T E H
authors.initials: TE
authors.lastname: Hooghoudt
authors.forename: E A J M
authors.initials: EA
authors.lastname: Schoenmakers
authors.forename: C G
authors.initials: CG
authors.lastname: Zinder
authors.forename: T M
authors.initials: TM
authors.lastname: de Boo
authors.forename: F W A
authors.initials: FW
authors.lastname: Verheugt
keywords: prognosis; reverse redistribution; scintigraphy