Accumulation of 99mTc-tetracycline in lung infarction area. An experimental study.

In 10 dogs, lung infarction of the right middle and of the left inferior lobe was obtained experimentally. 1 h after operation, 2.0 mCi 99mtechnetium-tetracycline was given intravenously. 5 h after injection, a maximum of accumulation in the infarcted tissue was detected. Conventional perfusion scintigrams were done by injecting 0.2 mCi of 131iodine-albumin particles. Correspondingly, a perfusion reduction in the infarcted area was seen by this technique. This method described seems promising for clinical use for the detection of lung infarction. Clinical studies in this field are in progress.