Value of thallium-201 scintigraphy for primary tumour detection in patients with malignant neck masses

The aim of this study was to assess the contribution of thallium-201 scintigraphy to primary tumour detection in patients with malignant neck masses and to evaluate its sensitivity and specificity. A total of 30 patients with histopathologically proven malignant tumours were included in the study. The sensitivity, specificity and accuracy of Tl-201 scintigraphy were found to be 54%, 75% and 57% respectively. These results suggest that Tl-201 scintigraphy has a limited value in the detection of the primary tumour in patients with malignant masses of the neck

Tl-201 imaging for differentiating between malignant and benign neck masses

The aim of this study was to assess the ability of Tl-201 scintigraphy to differentiate between malignant and benign neck masses. Fifty-eight patients with neck masses, whose diagnoses were confirmed by histological examination, were examined. The sensitivity, specificity and accuracy of Tl-201 scintigraphy were 80%, 96% and 88% respectively; when salivary gland masses were excluded, these values were 87%, 95% and 91% respectively. Our results suggest that Tl-201 scintigraphy is highly reliable in determining the malignancy of neck masses, especially when salivary gland masses are excluded. ((C) 1998 Lippincott-Raven Publishers)

Changes in regional cerebral blood flow demonstrated by single photon emission computed tomography in depressive disorders: comparison of unipolar vs bipolar subtypes

Single photon emission tomography (SPECT) with Tc-99m-HMpAO was used to compare regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF) in patients with unipolar and bipolar depression. The study group consisted of 10 unipolar depressed patients and seven bipolar depressed patients who met the DSM-III-R criteria for major depressive disorder (MDD). Nine physically and mentally healthy volunteers served as control subjects. SPECT images were obtained in the patients at two time points: (1) during the major depressive episode before patients had received medication; and (2) at the beginning of the remitted state while patients were receiving antidepressant medication. During the depressive episode, unmedicated unipolar depressed patients showed relatively increased left frontal rCBF compared both with the control subjects and the bipolar patients (P < 0.05). No significant differences in rCBF emerged between the bipolar patients and the control subjects. The data suggest that unipolar depressed patients, unlike bipolar patients, have relatively increased rCBF in the left frontal lobes during the depressive episode, but these differences tend to disappear during the period of remission. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved

Transient frontal hypoperfusion in Tc-99m hexamethylpropyleneamineoxime single photon emission computed tomography imaging during alcohol withdrawal

Background: Regional brain perfusion in patients during alcohol-withdrawal has been relatively less studied with brain SPECT technique. In this study, the hypothesis that possible regional cerebral bloodflow (rCBF) alterations due to alcohol withdrawal might be transitory in a homogenous group of alcoholic patients in terms of their physical-nutritional and cognitive functional conditions was investigated