[The value of serial scintigraphy with 99mTc pertechnetate compared with axial computed tomography in the diagnosis of cerebral tumours (author's transl)].

The increasing use of cranial computed tomography (CT) in the diagnosis of cerebral tumours has suggested that the place of cerebral serial scintigraphy (CSS) with 99mTc pertechnitate needs to be re-assessed. For this purpose 190 patients with 200 intracranial tumours were examined by both methods. Of the 155 histologically confirmed tumours, 87% could be diagnosed by CSS, and 99% with CT. Amongst the total of 190 patients, CSS was correct in 90%, and CT in 99%. Correct tumour diagnosis of meningiomas was 84% for both methods, and for glioblastomas, 83% for both methods. Combining the two methods, however, produced 92% accuracy with meningiomas, and 90% of glioblastomas could be correctly classified. Gliomas of Grade I/II had an accuracy of 39% for CSS (52% for CT), for metastases 50% for CSS (80% for CT) and in the group "various tumours" 19% for CSS (41% for CT). Computed tomography will have to be carried out in future on all patients suspected of having a primary tumour and before any neuro-surgical intervention. The main task of CSS remains as a screening procedure for intracranial space-occupying lesions and to increase the accuracy of diagnosis. CSS is also valuable as an indication for the use of contrast during CT. In some cases this isotope method may increase the type specific diagnosis of CT.