A meta-analysis of 99mTc-MIBI SPECT for detection of recurrent glioma after radiation therapy.

We performed a meta-analysis of the diagnostic accuracy of technetium-99m methoxyisobutylisonitrile ((99m)Tc-MIBI) single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) for assessment of glioma recurrence in patients after radiation therapy. The "PubMed" database was searched for relevant papers. Two reviewers extracted the data on study characteristics and examination results independently, and assessed the methodological quality of each included study. Pooled estimates of sensitivity, specificity, diagnostic odds ratio (DOR), and summary receiver operating characteristic (SROC) curve were obtained. Six investigations met inclusion criteria. The sensitivity ranged from 0.733 to 0.984, and the specificity ranged from 0.750 to 0.955. The pooled sensitivity and specificity were 0.898 and 0.919. The positive likelihood ratio (LR+) ranged from 3.800 to 19.381, the negative likelihood ratio (LR-) ranged from 0.017 to 0.311, and the DOR ranged from 16.500 to 567.00. The pooled LR+, LR- and DOR were 10.913, 0.115 and 94.062, respectively. The area under the SROC curve was 0.9650. Our results indicate that (99m)Tc-MIBI SPECT is a highly sensitive and specific modality in assessing patients with suspected glioma recurrence after radiation therapy.