[Abdominal splenosis: an often underdiagnosed entity]. / Esplenosis abdominal: una entidad frecuentemente infradiagnosticada.

Splenosis is defined as the heterotopic autotransplantation of splenic tissue because of a ruptured spleen due to trauma or surgery. It is a benign and incidental finding, although imaging tests may sometimes orient toward malignancy simulating renal tumors, abdominal lymphomas, endometriosis, among other. We report the case of a 42-year old male in whom a MRI was performed after a study due to abdominal pain. Multiple enlarged lymph nodes were observed in the abdomen, suggestive of lymphoproliferative disease. As an important background, splenectomy was carried out due to abdominal trauma at age 9. After several studies, it was decided to perform a (99m)Tc-labeled heat-damaged red blood cell scintigraphy that showed multiple pathological deposits distributed throughout the abdomen, and even the pelvis, being consistent with splenosis.

[Somatostatin receptor scintigraphy in pediatric bronchial carcinoid tumor]. / Gammagrafía con análogos de la somatostatina en el diagnóstico y el seguimiento del carcinoide bronquial pediátrico.

INTRODUCTION: Carcinoid tumor is a rare neuroendocrine neoplasm with different locations, the most frequent ones during the pediatric age being the appendix and lung. Scintigraphy with (111)In-DTPA-d-Phe(1)-octreotide has led to an importance advance in the diagnosis of extension in carcinoid tumor patients. We present three pediatric patients with bronchial carcinoid studied with somatostatin analogue scintigraphy (SSRS). CLINICAL CASES: The first patient (9 years) was studied using the SSRS after surgery due to carcinoid tumor in the right lower lobe in which tumor remains was observed (this being clearer in the tomography study). The second patient (10 years) presented due to endobronchial tumor in the left lower lobe together with atelectasis of the LUL and emphysema of the LLL. Radiology imaging techniques suggested the differential diagnosis between the endobronchial carcinoid tumor or plasma cells or foreign body gramuloma. The SSRS showed an abnormal deposit of activity in the left hemithorax consisted with carcinoid tumor. No other areas suggesting metastasis were observed. After the surgery (endobronchial resection), new controls with SSRS showed absence of disease. The third patient (12 years) came after a lobectomy (RUL) due to bronchial carcinoid. The SSRS did not show any abnormal areas of activity. In the subsequent control (3 months), a deposit of activity was observed in the middle third of the right hemithorax, after which a lobectomy was performed (RLL and ML) that showed small remains of neuroendocrine carcinoid. Subsequent controls were negative. CONCLUSION: The SSRS has demonstrated great utility in the diagnosis, follow-up and staging of pediatric patients, carriers of neuroendocrine carcinoid tumors.

[Interstitial nephritis demonstrated by 67Ga-citrate scintigraphy within a diagnosis of fever of unknown origin]. / Nefritis intersticial demostrada mediante gammagrafía con 67Ga-citrato en el contexto de fiebre de origen desconocido.

We present a clinical case of a 54-year-old woman that was admitted in our hospital with the diagnosis of fever of unknown origin. All the laboratory tests and imaging techniques did not manage to establish the fever's aetiology until a (67)Ga-citrate scan was performed and kidney uptake was observed, which lead to the clinical suspicion of drug-induced interstitial nephritis. The renal biopsy confirmed the diagnosis. This finding allowed corticoid therapy and cure.

[Relative renal function based on DMSA uptake corrected for volume: normalized relative renal function]. / Función renal relativa basada en captación de ácido dimercaptosuccínico corregida por volumen: función renal relativa normalizada.

OBJECTIVE: Relative renal function (RRF) quantification based on dimercaptosuccinic acid (DMSA) uptake is an established method for determining differential renal function. An abnormal kidney size may lead to an alteration in its RRF value, although it has no dysfunction. Therefore, it is useful to correct RRF values taking into account relative renal volumes, thus obtaining the normalized relative renal function (NRRF). The feasibility of the method used for volume correction, differences with respect to usual quantification and different normality intervals were studied. MATERIAL AND METHODS: A total of 187 DMSA renal scintigraphies (130 children and 57 adults) were studied. RRF was quantified and volume corrected to obtain NRRF. Patients were classified as normal or pathological using various normality intervals for NRRF. A second classification was performed depending on how the diagnostic changed after volume correction. RESULTS: An increase of pathological diagnosis was observed after volume correction, mainly in children. Using an intermediate estimation for the normality interval, 53% of the initially pathological diagnosis for children may be caused simply by different renal volumes. CONCLUSIONS: NRRF provides complementary information to RRF and helps to distinguish between a smaller kidney and a really hypofunctioning one in cases with abnormal RRF.

[Quantification of bone scintigraphy as an objective method in the follow-up of radioisotopic synoviorthesis]. / Cuantificación de la gammagrafía ósea en dos fases como método objetivo en el seguimiento de la sinoviortesis radioisotópica.

This work tries to provide the clinicians an objective tool that can contribute to the assessment of the results of radioisotopic synoviorthesis (RS). This study aims to assess the value of the quantification of bone scintigraphy in blood pool and late phase of the affected joints treated with 90Y silicate, in order to observe the clinical improvement experienced by most of these patients. A total of 69 bone scintigraphies (BS) in blood pool and late phase have been quantified. They belonged to 23 patients who were treated with RS with 90Y. The first scintigraphy study was performed before the treatment, the second and the third ones were performed 2 and 6 months after treatment. In each BS we quantified the index: counts per pixel of healthy / affected joint. We also have calculated the fraction in the late phase: counts per pixel of healthy bone / counts per pixel of affected and healthy joint. For the comparative statistical analysis of the results we used the Student's t test. We considered statistical significance when p < 0.05. All the patients presented clinical improvement. If we compare the index obtained in BS 2 months after treatment and pre-treatment we find statistical significance (p < 0.05) in the increase of index in the anterior view and late phase. If we compare the index obtained in BS 6 month after treatment and pre-treatment, we find a statistically significant increase in the anterior (p < 0.01) and posterior (p < 0.05) view of the blood pool phase and the anterior view of late phase (p < 0.01). The fraction counts per pixel of healthy bone / counts per pixel of affected and healthy joint did not present a significant increase in any BS control (2 and 6 months). We recommend quantification using the index (counts per pixel healthy / affected joint ) proposed in this work, because it is easy to perform, cheap and reliable in the follow-up of patients treated with RS.

[Check-ups with brain SPECT in electroconvulsive therapy in patients with severe drug-resistant depressive episodes and Parkinson's disease]. / Control con SPECT cerebral en la terapia electroconvulsiva en pacientes con episodio depresivo grave farmacorresistente y enfermedad de Parkinson.

We have studied three women (66,72 and 72 years) with Parkinson's disease of 11, 6 and 21 years of evolution and drug-resistant severe depressive episodes treated with electroconvulsive therapy (ECT). We have performed a brain SPECT (99mTc-HMPAO) before and after the ECT. The clinical improvement of the severe depressive episodes were measured using the Hamilton score. The first patient did not experience any clinical improvement (Hamilton score 42 to 42). In this patient the brain SPECT before treatment presented a reduced perfusion in the posterior parietal region, anterior cingulate cortex and medial frontal and parietal cortex. After the treatment, the brain SPECT did not present significant variations. The second patient presented a moderate clinical improvement (Hamilton score 46 to 36) and also presented moderate improvement in the neurological symptoms. The brain SPECT before the treatment showed reduced perfusion in the left temporal cortex and medium-posterior parietal cortex. After the treatment, it also did not reflect significant variations. The third patient experienced a very good response to the ECT sessions (Hamilton score 45 to 10) and also an improvement regarding the neurological symptoms. This patient presented a reduced perfusion in the medium-posterior parietal regions in the brain SPECT performed before the treatment; these regions presented a moderate improvement in the brain SPECT performed after the treatment. The patient who presented a significant neurological and psychiatric improvement also presented an improvement in the perfusion of the decreased areas in the brain SPECT and showed fewer alterations in the baseline brain SPECT compared with the others. The brain SPECT could have a prognostic (and confirmation) role regarding clinical improvement induced by ECT in resistant depression in Parkinson's disease. ECT is an alternative in treatment of severe depressive drug-resistant episodes associated to the Parkinson's disease.

[Value of the use of the geometric mean to calculate the relative renal function in 99mTc-DMSA renal scintigraphy]. / Valor del uso de la media geométrica en el cálculo de la función renal relativa en la gammagrafía renal con 99mTc-DMSA.

Determining the relationship of DMSA uptake of the left versus right kidney is theoretically one of the easiest quantitative procedures in nuclear medicine. The quantification can be performed on the posterior view, with or without a lateral view for correction of kidney depth. The geometric mean can also be determined by using both the anterior and the posterior views. This study has aimed to evaluate if there are significant differences in the quantification of the renal function percentage using only the posterior view and the geometric mean. Furthermore, we evaluated to what extent the patient's age and diagnosis influenced these differences. We have proposed a work protocol in which we indicate which cases the geometric mean should be calculated in order to minimize the possible errors occurring when only the posterior view is used.A total of 328 renal scintigraphies with 99mTc-DMSA performed at our Department in the last six months were studied. The mean and standard deviation of the differences as well as the correlation coefficient between both methods were calculated. The difference between the right renal function in posterior view and the right renal function obtained using the geometric mean was calculated for all the patients. The Student's T test was applied to determine whether the differences between both methods were statistically different from zero. Statistical differences were found in patients older than 9 years and in patients with genitourinary malformations.

[Soft tissue malignant fibrous histiocytoma. Visualization in bone scintigraphy]. / Histiocitoma fibroso maligno de partes blandas. Visualización en gammagrafía ósea.

Malignant fibrous histiocytoma (MFH) is the most common soft tissue malignant tumour in late adult life. MFH has been mentioned to have avid uptake of 67Ga citrate, and only 38% is uptake of 99mTc-MDP, although few cases of MFH have been reported. We present the case of a 73 years old male patient with MFH. In the blood pool phase of the bone scintigraphy, MFH was presented as an intense hyperactive lesion. In the late phase the tumor is one of the few MFH described to have avid uptake for 99mTc-MDP. In this work we also review some cases of MFH described and the different techniques used in the diagnosis and follow-up of these tumours.

[Thyroid scintigraphy and body scanning with 67 Ga in a case of primary thyroid lymphoma]. / Gammagrafía tiroidea y rastreo corporal con 67Ga en un caso de linfoma tiroideo primario.

The case of a 60-year old woman first presented a rapidly growing left cervical mass is presented. The fine needle aspiration-puncture (FNAP) lead to a diagnosis of thyroiditis. Due to the persistence of the symptoms, the FNAP was repeated again but was not conclusive, so that a surgical biopsy was performed. The pathological diagnosis was diffuse large cell primary thyroid lymphoma (PTL). The PTL is a rare entity that accounts for less than 1% of all the Non-Hodgkin's lymphomas. The thyroid scintigraphy showed the existence of a cold nodule in the left thyroid lobule and the 67Ga scan revealed a large abnormal lesion in the mediastinum that extended to the right latero-cervical region. After two chemotherapy courses, the 67Ga scan was normal.

[Value of 123I-MIBG scanning, neuron-specific enolase and serum ferritin in the diagnosis and follow-up of patients with neuroblastoma]. / Valor del rastreo con 123I-MIBG, enolasa neuronal específica y ferritina sérica en el diagnóstico y seguimiento de pacientes con neuroblastoma.

INTRODUCTION: The neuroblastoma (NB) is one of the most common pediatric malignant neoplasms. The most commonly used tumor markers in the diagnosis and follow-up of this tumor are the serum neuron-specific enolase (NSE), ferritin and lactic dehydrogenase and urinary vanillymandelic and homovanillic acid. The common imaging modalities are CT, MRI and 123I or 131I-meta-iodobenzylguanidine scintigraphy. AIM: The aim of this study is to assess the value of 123I-meta-iodobenzylguanidine (MIBG) scintigraphy and serum determinations of NSE and ferritin in the diagnosis and evolution of NB patients. MATERIAL AND METHODS: 20 patients (8 female, 12 male) whose ages ranged from 2 months to 9 years with a mean age of 2.64 years diagnosed of NB. 47 123I-MIBG scans, 47 NSE determinations and 47 ferritin ones were selected. RESULTS: At the time of diagnosis, 100% of the 123I-MIBG scans were positive. 65% of NSE determinations presented clearly pathological levels and 15% were very near to the cut-off point. Only 45% of the ferritin levels were increased. The differences between the lesions visible by 123I-MIBG scanning before and 3 months after treatment as well as NSE and ferritin levels were studied. When the Student's T test was applied, we found statistically significant pre and post-treatment differences in 123I-MIBG scanning and NSE. In the case of ferritin, there was no statistical significance in spite of the decrease in the values. The direct correlation and Spearman correlation between laboratory data and 123I-MIBG scanning as well as correlation between NSE and ferritin were also studied. There was a good correlation between 123I-MIBG and NSE and between NSE and ferritin. We have also studied the data in 7 relapses. CONCLUSIONS: 123I-MIBG scintigraphy and serum determination of NSE are two successful diagnostic tools for the diagnosis and evolution of NB patients.

[Scintigraphy with 111In-octreotide in a case of primary hepatic gastrinoma]. / Gammagrafía con 111In-octreotide en un caso de gastrinoma hepático primario.

Gastrinomas are uncommon tumors which are difficult to locate. They are often located in the head of the pancreas. About two-thirds of them are malignant, their growth is slow and they usually metastasize in the liver. In about 25% of cases, the Zollinger-Ellison (Z-E) syndrome is included in the multiple endocrine neoplasm type 1 syndrome (MEN 1).A 14-year old male patient presenting an episode of abdominal perforation which required emergency surgery is reported. The abdominal ultrasonography, CT scan and magnetic resonance revealed a single lesion in the left liver lobe, suggesting metastasis. Significantly increased levels of serum gastrin suggested a diagnosis of Z-E syndrome. A study with 111In-octreotide was required to locate the primary tumor and evaluate its extent. The scintigraphy showed only one abnormal uptake focus in the left liver lobe. Post-surgery scintigraphy studies revealed the presence of metastatic adenopathies which were removed after a second surgery. No pathologic findings were observed in the last nuclear medicine study. The somatostatin receptor scintigraphy is the most sensitive method to locate primary gastrinomas and to assess the tumoral dissemination in patients with Z-E Syndrome.

[Association of thyroid hemiagenesis and Graves disease]. / Asociación de hemiagenesia tiroidea y enfermedad de Graves.

Thyroid hemiagenesis is a very infrequent abnormality. We present a case of Graves disease associated to a congenital hemiagenesis of the thyroid gland. The thyroid scintigraphy, ultrasonography and laboratory analysis (that showed the existence of thyroid hyperfunction and the present of thyroid stimulating antibodies) were decisive in the diagnosis.

[Cerebral SPECT in mitochondrial encephalomyopathy. A case report and a review of the literature]. / SPECT cerebral en la encefalomiopatía mitocondrial. Presentación de un caso y revisión de la bibliografía.

INTRODUCTION: We report a case of mitochondrial encephalomyopathy with a complex clinical picture followed-up in the Neurology Department, and fully investigated using different techniques, in whom the definite diagnosis was essentially based on finding ragged red fibres on muscle biopsy. CLINICAL CASE: The patient was 60 years old when the definite diagnosis was made. The illness had started in his youth and affected different systems and parts of the body. On laboratory investigation the serum lactic acid and lactic acid curve were normal, as were those of the cerebrospinal fluid. Further complementary tests were done, including imaging techniques (cerebral CAT, MR and SPECT). SPECT was done using 99Tc-HMPAO. Since it was a single case, we can affirm that the diagnosis of mitochondrial encephalomyopathy was made on muscle biopsy, supported by other complementary investigations, but without being able to classify the case among the various mitochondrial encephalopathies since the clinical features were common to several of them. CONCLUSION: More sequential studies are needed with different imaging techniques, in the same patient, carefully taking into account any slight modification in his clinical state, during the time elapsed between two consecutive serial follow-up studies.

[Simple thyroid cyst]. / Quiste simple de tiroides.

Simple or true thyroid cysts are very rare. We only have found one case in which colorless and acellular transparent fluid has been found by means of the fine needle aspiration puncture (FNAP). We report the case of a 33 year old female who first presented with a rapidly growing thyroid nodule. The thyroid scintigraphy revealed the existence of a cold nodule and the ultrasonography showed a lesion having a cystic appearance. The FNAP was performed and was both diagnostic and therapeutic in this case.

[Bone scintigraphy in two cases of primary vertebral osteosarcoma in adults]. / Gammagrafía ósea en dos casos de osteosarcoma vertebral primario en edad adulta.

The primary vertebral osteosarcoma in adults is a rare tumor which represents less than 2% of all osteosarcomas. We present the cases of two men (40 and 33 years old) who began with pain and neurological compression symptoms. The imaging methods used to study the tumors were X-rays, CT, MRI and bone scintigraphy with 99mTc-HMDP. After the pathological diagnosis, the tumors were removed surgically and the treatment was completed with chemotherapy and radiotherapy. In this report the authors review the published cases of vertebral osteosarcoma, its epidemiology, clinical presentation and characteristics in the different imaging techniques.

[Brain SPECT in a case of Wernicke Korsakoff syndrome]. / SPECT cerebral en un caso de síndrome de Wernicke Korsakoff.

INTRODUCTION AND CLINICAL CASE: In this article we report a 44 year old male with chronic alcoholism as antecedent and Wernicke Korsakoff s syndrome, studied with brain CT, MR and SPECT. In this work we review the different conclusion obtained with different studies and in different stages of the chronic alcoholism disease. CONCLUSIONS: Although several authors have described impaired frontal blood flow in the Wernicke Korsakoff s syndrome, in our case the parietal, temporal and occipital cortex were the most affected.

[Hepatobiliary scintigraphy in a case of acute cholecystitis in childhood]. / Gammagrafía hepatobiliar en un caso de colecistitis aguda en la infancia.

Acute cholecystitis is an uncommon disease in childhood. Few cases in patients under 10 years of age have been found in literature. An eight-year old male patient with no history of interest who had acute acalculous cholecystitis was reported. Ultrasonographic and isotopic studies led to the diagnosis and control of the patient's evolution.

[Radioimmunometric assay of neuron specific enolase in aqueous humor and serum in patients with retinoblastoma]. / Determinación radioinmunométrica de la enolasa neuronal específica en humor acuoso y suero, en pacientes con retinoblastoma.

INTRODUCTION: Retinoblastomas (RB) are the most common malignant intraocular tumors in childhood. The neuron specific enolase (NSE) is used as a tumor marker in different malignant diseases (mainly in neuroblastomas and lung carcinoma of small cells). In this work we report our experience using NSE and the role we consider that it plays in the determination of this enzyme in RB cases. MATERIALS AND METHODS: NSE determinations in aqueous humor (AH) and serum were carried out in 17 RB by means of a radioimmunometric assay and were compared with those values obtained in a control group composed of 8 subjects in whom the RB diagnosis as well as other diseases that could alter its determination had been ruled out. The possible correlation between NSE levels and different tumor stages (Reese-Elsworth and histological-clinical), as well as the tumor type (exophytic and mixed) were also studied. RESULTS: NSE levels were increased in AH and serum in 88% of RB patients and were normal in all the subjects in the control group (when a sample which was considered to be non-valid due to the presence of red cells in AH was excluded). No correlation between NSE levels in AH and serum and the different tumor stages was found. Nevertheless, the RB group of mixed tumor type showed a significantly higher mean in AH (p<0.01) than the RB exophytic group. CONCLUSION: NSE determination in AH is of value in the differential diagnosis in patients in whom RB is suspected but difficult to diagnose as well as in the diagnosis of relapses. Serum determinations are mainly useful in the follow-up and in the early diagnosis of possible metastases.