Thallium 201 Scintigraphy

The radioactive isotope thallium 201 behaves physiologically as a potassium analog, and when injected intravenously accumulates rapidly within the cells of many organs. Uptake of the isotope reflects both regional perfusion and sodium-potassium pump activity. The radionuclide emits 80 keV x-rays which are suitable for scintillation camera imaging. The main clinical application of (201)TI scintigraphy has been in myocardial imaging. Abnormal uptake of the isotope results in a cold spot on the myocardial image. In patients with coronary artery disease, the differentiation of ischemic and infarcted myocardium is made by comparing images obtained after injecting the radionuclide at the peak of a maximal exercise test with those obtained after injection at rest. Abnormalities due to ischemia usually are seen only on the stress image whereas fixed defects in both rest and stress studies usually indicate areas of infarction or scarring. Some investigators believe that redistribution images obtained four to six hours after stress injection (without administering further (201)TI) give the same information as a separate rest study. The sensitivity of stress imaging for detecting significant coronary disease is of the order of 80 percent to 95 percent, though computer processing of the images may be necessary to achieve the higher figure. The prediction of the extent of coronary disease from (201)TI images is less reliable. An abnormal (201)TI image is not entirely specific for coronary artery disease and the likelihood of an abnormal image being due to this diagnosis varies according to the clinical circumstances. The main clinical value of (201)TI myocardial imaging is likely to be in the noninvasive screening of patients with atypical chest pain or with ambiguous findings on stress electrocardiographic tests. It has also proved useful in studying patients with variant angina or following a coronary bypass operation. It is doubtful whether the technique is clinically helpful in most patients with suspected or established acute myocardial infarction. Imaging of organs other than the heart with (201)TI has received much less attention but has been reported in patients with peripheral vascular disease and various primary and secondary neoplasms.