Radiation absorbed dose estimates for oxygen-15 radiopharmaceuticals (H2(15)O, C15O, O15O) in newborn infants.

In preparation for measurement of regional cerebral oxygen metabolism by positron emission tomography, radiation absorbed dose estimates for 19 internal organs, blood, and total body were calculated for newborn infants following bolus intravenous administration of H2(15)O and brief inhalation of C15O and O15O. Cumulated activity for each radiopharmaceutical was calculated from a compartmental model based on the known biologic behavior of the compound. Values for mean absorbed dose/unit cumulated activity (S) for internal organs and total body were based on a newborn phantom. S was separately calculated for blood. Total radiopharmaceutical absorbed dose estimates necessary to measure cerebral oxygen metabolism in a 3.51-kg infant based on 0.7 mCi/kg H2(15)O and 1 mCi/kg C15O and O15O were determined to be 1.6 rad to the lung (maximum organ dose), 0.28 rad to the marrow, 0.46 rad to the gonads, and 0.22 rad to total body. These values are similar to those for current clinical nuclear medicine procedures employing 99mTc in newborn infants.