99mTc-IDA hepatobiliary imaging following upper abdominal surgery

Hepatobiliary scintigraphy. An effective tool in the management of bile leak following laparoscopic cholecystectomy

Bile leaks and bile duct injury has been the major postoperative complications described after laparoscopic cholecystectomy. In this study, we evaluated the role of hepatobiliary scintigraphy (HBS) in patients who underwent laparoscopic cholecystectomy, and there was a clinical suspicion of bile leak in postoperative period.

METHOD

Twenty-five patients (M/F=11:14, mean age 39+/-8 years; range 24-58 years) with suspected bile leak postlaparoscopic cholecystectomy underwent sequential HBS.

RESULTS

Thirteen patients had normal hepatobiliary scintigraphic studies. Five patients had small bile leak in gall bladder fossa with primary route of bile flow into the gut. All these 18 patients improved on conservative management alone. Significant bile leak from the cystic stump region was demonstrated in four patients. All of them were subjected to endoscopic cholangiography (ERCP), which confirmed the site of leak. All patients had stenting and sphincterotomy. One patient showed bile leak and obstruction at the lower end of common bile duct, he improved spontaneously. Another patient showed poor hepatocytes function and no excretion of radiotracer and underwent ERCP followed by hepaticojejunostomy for common hepatic duct ligation. One patient had frank bile leak in the right paracolic gutter and had to undergo hepaticojejunostomy.

CONCLUSIONS

HBS is a valuable noninvasive method of investigating possible bile leaks or other biliary disruptions in postlaparoscopic cholecystectomy patients. Negative study for significant bile leak can assure the surgeon to manage the patient conservatively. However, it cannot be relied on absolutely when determining the need for reoperation for a significant bile leak in early postoperative period.

Acute cholecystitis, biliary obstruction, and biliary leakage

The use of cholescintigraphy to diagnose acute cholecystitis, biliary obstruction, and biliary leakage dates back to the late 1970s. Today, despite the many advances in imaging instrumentation, radiopharmaceuticals, and methodology over these years, cholescintigraphy still plays an important role in confirming or excluding these diagnoses in acutely ill patients. Acute calculous and acalculous cholecystitis, gallbladder perforation, biliary obstruction, and biliary leakage often present as acute abdominal pain, and must be differentiated from other surgical and nonsurgical etiologies with similar symptoms and presentation. Understanding the pathophysiology of acute hepatobiliary diseases is vital for deciding on the most advantageous imaging work-up and for interpretation of the studies. To optimize the value of cholescintigraphy, up-to-date methology, proper use of appropriate pharmacologic interventions, and recognition of characteristic image findings are critical.

Reliability of visual and quantitative hepatobiliary scintigraphy in the follow-up of patients who have undergone cholecystectomy and transduodenal sphincteroplasty

A noninvasive scintigraphic technique to assess the efficacy of a surgical procedure (e.g., cholecystectomy and transduodenal sphincteroplasty) depends on the development of reliable and accurate qualitative or quantitative diagnostic criteria that allow early recognition of the occurrence and site of complications. For this purpose, the authors divided biliary flow into a four-step progression process and analyzed transit times from the peripheral vein to the gallbladder, common bile duct, and duodenum and the transit time from the common bile duct to the duodenum. These quantitative parameters were assessed in nine healthy volunteers and 31 asymptomatic patients who had previous cholecystectomy to validate their reliability. The results indicate that the four-step Tc-99m HIDA progression analysis provides a reliable, noninvasive evaluation of biliary flow, so that it can be applied to patients who have had cholecystectomy.

Detection of complications after liver transplantation by technetium-99m mebrofenin hepatobiliary scintigraphy

Fifty-five hepatobiliary scintigraphic studies using 99mTc-Mebrofenin were performed in 52 orthotopic liver transplant patients to evaluate suspected biliary complications, namely biliary extravasation and extrahepatic obstruction. Final diagnosis was made by analysis of the clinical course and other procedures. Three out of three studies of biliary leak and four out of five studies of biliary obstruction were detected. There were no false positives in either complication. The sensitivity, specificity and accuracy were 100, 100, 100% for ectravasation and 80, 100, 98% for obstruction, respectively. Hepatobiliary scintigraphy appears to be an accurate means of detecting biliary leak and obstruction associated with the transplanted liver.

Technetium-99m-iminodiacetic acid organic anions: review of biokinetics and clinical application in hepatology

Technetium-99m-labeled iminodiacetic acid analogs are a new class of organic anions, taken up and secreted by hepatocyte into hepatic bile by a carrier-mediated organic anion pathway. They provide a new dimension in the assessment of pathophysiology and morphology of the hepatobiliary system. The amount of uptake and the rapidity of its elimination from the liver is dependent upon the structural configuration of the agent as well as the functional integrity of the hepatocyte and the patency of the biliary system. The clinical areas for application are wide and include most of the hepatobiliary diseases. Technetium-99m-iminodiacetic acid, an agent well suited for both planar and single photon tomographic scintigraphy, is ideal for early diagnosis prior to anatomical changes in the hepatobiliary system. The data collection directly from the liver provides quantitation of both regional and global liver diseases. The count-based method for measuring gallbladder emptying overcomes the theoretical disadvantages of geometric tests. Biokinetics and current clinical application of six of the 99mTc-iminodiacetic acid agents are reviewed, and the potential future clinical and research areas of application are indicated.

[Investigation of biliodigestive anastomosis with the help of radiopharmaceutical products]

Hepatobiliary investigation using 99mTc-diethyl-iminodiacetic acid (IDA) has permitted a new point of view about the morphological and functional investigation of the biliary-digestive anastomosis. Our clinical study concerning 31 patients (13 choledochoduodenostomies 10 hepaticojejunostomies, 6 choledochojejunostomies and 2 cholecystojejunostomies) helped to specify scintigraphic imaging (stasis in intrahepatic bile duct, reflux in stomach, strangulation phenomenon on the level of the mesocolon, incomplete or complete obstruction). The problems associated with current diagnostic procedures are discussed and we place the scintigraphic method amongst other radiologic methods (barium meal, endoscopic retrograde cholangiography and percutaneous transhepatic cholangiography). This non-invasive diagonostic procedure plays a leading part in the investigation of the biliary digestive anastomosis, and particularly in the hepatico-jejunostomies.

Detection of intraperitoneal bile accumulations: significance of ultrasonography, CT, and cholescintigraphy

Free or loculate intraperitoneal fluid can easily be detected by ultrasonography or computerized tomography. The differentiation of bile fluid from other liquid collections and the documentation of the presence and extent of a bile leak can be difficult diagnostic problems. In representative case studies the use and the diagnostic limits of ultrasonography and CT in the diagnosis of intraperitoneal bile accumulations are discussed. A diagnostic algorithm including cholescintigraphy for the evaluation of biliary leakage is proposed.

Afferent loop obstruction documented with hepatobiliary imaging

This report concerns a case of afferent loop obstruction secondary to carcinoma of the gastric stump. Radionuclide hepatobiliary imaging was used to document the afferent loop obstruction.

Role of Tc-99m IDA scintigraphy in the evaluation of hepatobiliary trauma

Each year approximately 52 million Americans are injured, of which 11 million require hospitalization and 110,000 die. This has an associated health care cost of 3 billion dollars. Hepatobiliary injuries have always constituted a significant area of involvement. They have become more easily detectable since the advent of technetium-99m analogs of iminodiacetic acid (IDA). Biliary leakage secondary to other causes, such as inflammation, neoplasm, and iatrogenic factors are also well demonstrated in a safe, simple, and rapid manner with radionuclide imaging. The relatively low patient radiation dose that is associated with these procedures permits follow-up studies when necessary.

The role of radionuclide studies in pediatric gastrointestinal disorders

Radionuclide techniques are currently used to fully evaluate many congenital and acquired abnormalities of the gastrointestinal tract of children. Frequently, the anatomic and functional data provided by the nuclear examination are definitive. In the study of many disease entities, tracer techniques have replaced more cumbersome or invasive procedures. Although the radiopharmaceuticals and instrumentation are similar as applied to both children and adults, the uniqueness of children and their disease entities requires special consideration when performing and interpreting their studies. In this review, the principle radionuclide examinations used in the evaluation of pediatric gastrointestinal disorders are detailed and examples are illustrated.

Evaluation of the postoperative patient with 99mTc-IDA cholescintigraphy

In order to assess the role of 99mTc-iminodiacetic acid (IDA) cholescintigraphy in evaluating postoperative patients, a total of 213 studies were performed in 189 patients over a 3-year time period. Of these, 130 studies were obtained in 125 cases with signs and/or symptoms suggesting postcholecystectomy syndrome. A normal sized duct that emptied within an hour ruled out significant pathology with a high degree of accuracy (97%). A less reliable finding of normalcy was the combination of ductal dilatation with functional patency in that three of 20 patients (15%) who exhibited this pattern were proven to have nonobstructing calculi in their common bile duct. AZ spectrum of abnormal findings was encountered. Ductal dilatation was a most significant indicator of partial or intermittent ductal obstruction when it was associated with altered time-activity dynamics in the ducts and secondarily, delayed biliary-to-bowel transit time of the radiotracer. Patterns indicating complete common duct obstruction, cystic duct remnants, and bile leaks also proved to be very sensitive. Seventy-three studies in 56 patients very accurately evaluated the integrity of biliary-enteric bypass anastomosis. Complete and partial obstructive patterns were similar in appearance to those encountered in postcholecystectomy syndrome. Several leaks were also detected in this patient population. Ten studies were performed in eight patients who underwent Billroth II gastroenterostomies primarily to see if afferent loop obstruction was present. Three of these patients did demonstrate dilated A-loops with stasis, thereby making a positive diagnosis possible.

Technetium-99m biliary imaging in pediatric surgical problems

The results of scintigraphic imaging of the hepatobiliary system with 99mTc-PIPIDA (IDA derivative p-isopropylacetanilidoiminodiacetic acid) in forty children are reported. 99mTc-PIPIDA imaging is a noninvasive, rapid, safe examination that provides both functional and anatomical information about the hepatobiliary system. Although interpretation is limited by elevated direct serum bilirubin, this agent allows diagnostic information to be obtained with direct serum bilirubin levels up to 8 mg/dl.

Radionuclide imaging of the biliary tree

The new 99mTc biliary scintigraphy agents are highly sensitive and specific in detecting biliary tract disease and use of them is the initial procedure of choice in evaluating patients with suspected acute cholecystitis. Other clinically useful indications are evaluation of biliary kinetics; evaluation of patients with suspected traumatic bile leakage, gallbladder perforation, or postsurgical biliary tract complications; and evaluation of patients with suspected biliary obstruction. In 99mTc we have a simple radiopharmaceutical of low radiation for evaluating congenital abnormalities and neonatal jaundice. In the Orient 99mTc cholescintigraphy is extremely important in evaluating patients with suspected intrahepatic stones. The overall advantages of this technique include availability, safety, simplicity, and accuracy. In addition, it may be performed in those patients who are allergic to iodinated contrast agents.

Current aspects of nuclear imaging in clinical oncology

This presentation will focus on the recent developments in nuclear medicine that relate to diagnosis and staging in the cancer patient. The commercial availability of new Agar cameras as well as longitudinal tomographic scanning devices has improved gallium imaging significantly. This has enhanced tumor detection and resulted in better use of gallium scanning in the cancer patient. Areas of controversy have also developed. In particular, the question of whether or not the gallium scan can be used to avoid mediastinoscopy in some case of bronchogenic carcinoma will be detailed. Techniques in nuclear medicine must be carefully integrated with other noninvasive investigation such as CT and ultrasound. At Yale, the authors have gathered considerable data indicating the best way to interact nuclear medicine radionuclide scintigraphy of the liver with the ultrasound examination. Our approach to this problem for the detection of focal disease in the liver will be discussed. 99mTc-HIDA has been proven useful in a wide variety of biliary disorders. Use of scintigraphy in the evaluation of cholangio-enteric bypass procedures in the cancer patient will be reviewed.