[Some aspects of examining the images of tracer hyperfixation foci in osteoscintigrams by computer-assisted automated analysis].

OBJECTIVE: to analyze the numerical characteristics of bone metastases according to scintigraphic data. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Computer-assisted automated analysis was used to examine planar skeletal osteoscintigrams in patients with breast cancer who had both complete remission and disease progression with skeletal metastases. Brightness in the image was used as an analyzed indicator. RESULTS: Examination of physiological tracer accumulation in patients without skeletal metastases suggests that there is a wide variability of brightness values in the scintigrams of individual skeletal areas. At the same time, the skeletal anatomic areas show significant differences in the average image brightness values (p < 0.01). In virtually all skeletal areas, the average brightness values in the pathological tracer hyperfixation foci (HFFs) in the scintigrams are dominant over the similar values of physiological HFFs. CONCLUSION: There is a direct relationship between the tracer accumulation levels in the skeletal areas without metastatic involvement and the bone metastases occurring in the same areas.

[Approaches to the study of the incidence of benign tumors in the pediatric population]. / Podkhody k izucheniiu chastoty dobrokachestvennykh opukholei v detskoi populiatsii.

Occurrence of benign tumors in large pediatric population have never been studied. Basing on the data on the pediatric population of Khabarovsk, the authors developed a method of improved analysis of benign tumor morbidity. The method suggests the use of case histories as well as medical check-up data. Mathematical modelling was employed to compare primary incidence and occurrence indexes. The improved mean incidence of benign tumors in children for 1985-1989 was 66.8 cases and improved occurrence--174.2 per 10,000 children. The values are by the order of magnitude higher than those reported by hospitals.