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C C Nimmon

Publications and source records attributed to C C Nimmon.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

Relative renal uptake and transit time measurements using functional factor images and fuzzy regions of interest.

The aim of the study was a quantitative comparison of relative renal uptake and both the whole-kidney and the parenchymal transit time derived from factor analysis of image sequences and provided by standard clinical procedues. In order to extract the stable, well-interpretable factors, factor analysis was performed locally in the problem-specific time and spatial windows and the resulting factor images either evaluated directly as functional images or used as fuzzy regions of interest (ROIs) for the subsequent extraction of time-activity curves from the analysed data. The values of relative renal uptake of the left kidney measured in the functional factor images, which demonstrate the initial accumulation of activity in renal parenchyma (mean 51.0%), did not differ significantly from the values obtained by a standard method (mean 51.5%, r = 0.98, P<0.001). Whole-kidney transit time calculated using fuzzy ROI curves correlated well with the reference values (r = 0.84, P<0.001); however, both its mean value (336.5 s) and the standard deviation (151.5 s) were substantially greater than those of the values provided by a standard procedure (262.8+/-86.9 s). Parenchymal transit time calculated using ROI curves correlated better with the transit time through a wider corticomedullary region rather than through a narrow cortical region, which is decisive in a differential diagnosis of renal disorders. In general, values of transit times provided by factor analysis correlated well with those provided by reference methods but with a shift towards the higher numerical values. This may have been a consequence of a greater extent of the automatically extracted fuzzy ROIs, or of occasionally delayed accumulation in the upper calyces. Results of the study provide quantitative evidence that the factor analysis of dynamic data, even without the introduction of prior physiological information, may yield clinically relevant information. However, some basic requirements, such as sufficiently high sampling frequency and count rate, adaption of the method to a specific clinical task, and proper selection of time and spatial windows for locally performed analysis, have to be fullfilled if the method is to be successfully applied clinically.

Algorithms↗

Imaging prostate cancer with technetium-99m-7E11-C5.3 (CYT-351).

UNLABELLED: To evaluate the performance of the 99mTc-labeled monoclonal antibody CYT-351 in visualizing prostate cancer, radioimmunoscintigraphy (RIS) was performed in 35 patients. METHODS: Antibody (0.5 mg) labeled with 600 MBq 99mTc was injected intravenously after obtaining informed consent. Planar and SPECT imaging was performed at 10 min and 6-8 and 22-24 hr postinjection. The scans were evaluated for visualization of the primary focus or local recurrence, extraprostatic invasion, lymph node involvement and uptake in bone and soft tissue metastases. RESULTS: Thirty-six studies in 35 patients were performed. In 13/14 evaluable studies with clinically localized prostate cancer, RIS had a true-positive rate of 92% (12/13). In eight patients with previous incidental carcinoma detected during transurethral resection undertaken for clinically benign disease, there were 86% true-positive results (6/7) and one true-negative result, which were confirmed by systematic needle biopsies. In six patients with evidence of local recurrence after a previous radical prostatectomy, the true-positive rate was 100% (6/6), which was confirmed by raised or rising prostate-specific antigen levels (PSA) and/or by biopsy. In the eight patients with known metastases, the disease was visualized in 4/4 with progression but not in the 3/3 with regression; one patient demonstrated regressing disease as determined by PSA levels. The overall accuracy was 92%. CONCLUSION: RIS with 99mTc CYT-351 is capable of providing good quality images and yielding clinically useful information safely. It has a potentially important clinical role for patients with rising PSA levels but negative images by conventional modalities.

Antibodies, Monoclonal↗

Clinical renography: 25 years on.

Renal radionuclide studies have progressed from the probe to the gamma camera and sophisticated hard- and software, yet the principles remain the same. Many of the problems were identified and the solutions proposed 25 years ago, but these solutions are still not applied in practice. This survey charts the evolution of renography during this period.

History, 20th Century↗

Prostatic radioimmunoscintigraphy: preliminary results using technetium-labelled monoclonal antibody, CYT-351.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the clinical application of a new technique for imaging prostatic malignancy using planar imaging and single-photon emission tomography (SPET) with technetium-99m-labelled antibody to a prostatic cell surface membrane antigen. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Prostatic malignancy was imaged by radioimmunoscintigraphy (RIS) using a 99mTc-labelled monoclonal antibody, CYT-351, raised against a newly identified membrane antigen present in normal and malignant prostatic tissues. The protocol involved taking serial images and assessing the changes in activity, as the uptake of specific antibody increased with time and non-specific uptake decreased. Data from planar images were collected at 10 min, 6 and 24 h after injection with antibody, and by SPET at 6 and 24 h using a Siemens Orbiter Large Field of View gamma camera. Twenty-two RIS scans were evaluated, which included six patients with clinically localized disease, six patients with previous incidental carcinoma at prostatectomy for apparently benign disease, four patients with evidence of local recurrence after radical prostatectomy and six patients with metastatic disease. RESULTS: Primary tumours and secondary lymphatic and bone metastases were demonstrated. Only one minor side-effect was experienced. CONCLUSION: This RIS technique was capable of imaging primary prostatic malignancy and metastatic disease in lymph nodes and bone. Its clinical application remains to be defined, but potentially it provides a new means for tumour staging based upon tissue characterization. It may be particularly useful before radical prostatectomy and it is capable of imaging local recurrence following radical treatment of localized disease. Future applications include monitoring the progression of disease and the response to treatment.

Antibodies, Monoclonal↗

Comparison of a corticopelvic transfer index with renal transit times.

The aim of this study was to compare a simple measure obtained visually from serial images, the corticopelvic transfer index (CPI), with renal transit times obtained by deconvolution. The CPI was defined as the time interval between the appearance of the tracer in the renal cortex to its appearance in the renal pelvis. Four groups of subjects as determined by clinical data and renal transit times were investigated retrospectively: 86 normal kidneys, 20 kidneys with renovascular disorder, 17 kidneys with obstructive nephropathy and 26 kidneys with dilated pelves without obstructive nephropathy. There were good correlations only between the CPI and mean parenchymal transit time (MPTT; r = 0.6) and the whole kidney transit time index (WKTTI; r = 0.8). It was concluded that in centres where gamma-camera studies with deconvolution analysis are not possible, the CPI could be a useful parameter in renal radionuclide scintigraphy for suspected renovascular disorders.

Humans↗

Predictive value of captopril transit renography in essential hypertension and diabetic nephropathy.

Captopril renography was utilized to assess the presence of angiotensin II dependent renovascular dysfunction in (1) 28 patients with mild to moderate essential hypertension (EH) with unimpaired renal function, and (2) 25 hypertensive patients with diabetic nephropathy (HDN). These studies were classified according to the diagnostic criteria outlined by the Working Party on Diagnostic Criteria of Renovascular Hypertension with Captopril Renography and the mean parenchymal transit time (MPTT) was used as an index for detecting the presence of angiotensin II dependent renal haemodynamic change. Patients with EH showed non-significant or non-specific alterations in the MPTT. Four patients in the HDN group showed a significant prolongation of MPTT in the presence of renin-angiotensin-aldosterone activation due to renal artery stenosis, and the other patients in this group showed a significant decrease in MPTT after captopril, consistent with increased blood flow and improved tubular transport function in the presence of microangiopathy only. We conclude that addition of MPTT to the standard diagnostic criteria of captopril renography may be helpful in predicting the beneficial or detrimental impact of angiotensin II inhibition treatment in HDN and in limiting the test protocol in EH to one post-captopril study.

Adult↗

A prospective study comparing SPET with MRI and CT as prognostic indicators following severe closed head injury.

Ten patients were studied prospectively afer severe closed head injury to determine the relationship between long-term clinical outcome and abnormalities detected by single photon emission tomography (99Tcm-HMPAO SPET), CT and MRI obtained within 60 days of injury. The ability of SPET to detect abnormalities not visualized by CT or MRI after cerebral trauma by the results of this study. Changes detected by SPET [global cerebral blood flow (gCBF) and number of regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF) deficits] soon after trauma were shown to be more closely correlated with long-term outcome than changes detected by MRI or CT. Templates were used to classify lesions by site and a multivariate analysis was undertaken to establish the importance of defect position in predicting clinical outcome. The results suggest that lesions in the temporal lobes, frontal lobes and basal ganglia are related to poor prognosis, and that SPET yields more useful prognostic data than the other methods.

Adult↗

Clinical evaluation of 99mTc diaminocyclohexane, a renal tubular agent with cationic transport: results in healthy human volunteers.

As alternatives to anionically transported hippuran, structure distribution experiments on a series of 99mTc-labelled primary substituted ethylene diamine compounds led to selection of 99mTc diaminocyclohexane (DACH) for clinical evaluation, 99mTc DACH, a cation with the structure trans-[O2(DACH)2 99mTc]+ is prepared by mixing 50 mumol DACH, 1 mumol stannous tartrate and 500 MBq of 99mTc. Seven normal volunteers underwent renal imaging and clearance studies using 150 MBq of 99mTc DACH and 1 MBq of 125I hippuran simultaneously. The images with 99mTc DACH revealed good uptake and excretion. The mean +/- 2 SD values of parenchymal and whole-kidney transit time indices and mean parenchymal transit time were 46 +/- 33, 75 +/- 64 and 141 +/- 51 s, respectively, similar to mercaptoacetyl triglycine. The mean clearance of 99mTc DACH was found to be 163 ml/min (SD = 32). Following cationic blockade with 900 mg oral thiamine, significant reduction (p < 0.001) in DACH clearance was noted, but hippuran clearance remained unaltered. The results support the hypothesis that 99mTc DACH is transported cationically.

Adult↗

Validation of renal output efficiency as an objective quantitative parameter in the evaluation of upper urinary tract obstruction.

This is a preliminary study of the parameter, renal output efficiency (ROE), for the quantitation of furosemide (frusemide) response in diuresis renography. This is calculated by a technique independent of variations in uptake rate by the kidneys. Eleven healthy volunteers and 34 patients suspected of upper urinary obstruction were subjected to gamma camera studies using 99mTc-MAG3 and a standard protocol. Furosemide was given at 18 min after the study was started. The ROE was calculated in each kidney and the results were correlated with final diagnosis. The range of ROE in healthy individuals varied between 82% and 98% (mean = 91.6%); while obstructed kidneys showed significantly reduced values (p < 0.001) ranging between 30% and 76% (mean = 56%). In the diagnosis of urinary obstruction, the ROE has a sensitivity of 91%, specificity of 94% and accuracy of 94%. ROE complements conventional diuresis renography and provides better diagnostic yield in patients with impaired renal function.

Adult↗

A study comparing SPECT with CT and MRI after closed head injury.

After closed head injury nineteen patients had single photon emission tomography (SPECT) using the lipophilic tracer 99m-Technetium hexamethyl-propylene-amineoxime (HMPAO) to compare the defects shown by CT and MRI. SPECT showed more focal cerebral lesions than either CT or MRI alone or in combination. Most lesions shown by SPECT were not shown by CT or MRI in the corresponding anatomical regions. The most severely disabled patients showed the highest number of SPECT lesions (average four per patient) and the lowest (mean, SE) cerebral blood flow (718, 69 ml/min) compared with the less disabled patients (two per patient and 1058, 51 ml/min, p less than 0.05). There was a correlation between the Glasgow Outcome Scale grade and the global cerebral blood flow (r 0.74, p less than 0.05). The perfusion defects may correlate with clinical signs that were not explained by CT or MRI findings. SPECT may complement the clinical evaluation in the assessment of outcome after head injury.

Brain Injuries↗

A radiopharmaceutical for imaging areas of lymphocytic infiltration: 123I-interleukin-2. Labelling procedure and animal studies.

The labelling of interleukin-2 (IL-2) with 123I and its in vivo application for imaging chronic pathological lymphocytic infiltrations are described. The lactoperoxidase/glucoseoxidase technique was the labelling method of choice leading to immunoreactive IL-2 with high specific activity. Labelled IL-2 was injected in diabetes-prone non-obese diabetic (NOD) mice with pancreatic lymphocytic infiltration. As control animals, Balb/c mice were used. As specificity control, monoclonal antibodies AMT13 and UCHT1, bovine serum albumin and alpha-lactalbumin were radioiodinated and injected in mice. Eighteen NOD mice and four control Balb/c mice were used for gamma camera imaging experiments. Fifty-four NOD and 20 Balb/c mice were used for time course single organ counting and autoradiography. Gamma camera images showed that radioactivity accumulated in the pancreatic region from the 10th minute onwards in NOD mice injected with 123I-IL-2 but not in Balb/c mice, or in NOD mice injected with control radiopharmaceuticals. These findings were confirmed by counting the radioactivity present in single organs. Autoradiography of NOD pancreas, after injection of labelled IL-2, showed that radioactivity was specifically associated with infiltrating lymphocytes. In conclusion, this technique is highly specific and easy to perform and we suggest its application in humans for in vivo detection of areas of lymphocytic infiltration.

Animals↗

Cerebral uptake of MIBG: adrenoceptors visualized?

Radiolabelled metaiodobenzylguanidine (MIBG) localizes in adrenergic neurons. A study was carried out to evaluate the uptake of this radiopharmaceutical in cerebral tissues. Twenty-three patients with neural crest tumours, who had no evidence of central nervous system disease, were evaluated. Each patient underwent a diagnostic MIBG study, followed by a therapy dose with 131I-MIBG and subsequent scintigraphy. Focal uptake was seen in the cerebellum (CB), basal nuclei and thalamic region (BNTr), 24 and 48 h postinjection on the diagnostic images. The BNTr to cerebral cortex ratio ranged from 1.05 to 1.79. Uptake was also seen on the days 2, 3, 4 and 6 post-therapy images. Single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) clearly outlined the uptake in the CB and BNTr. The BNTr to cerebral cortex ratio ranged from 1.10 to 1.85 and CB to cerebral cortex ratio from 1.18 to 2.01. It is hypothesized that the focal uptake observed in the CB and BNTr is due to adrenergic receptor binding. It is felt that SPECT with radiolabelled MIBG may prove to be a useful tracer for mapping the adrenergic receptors in the human brain.

3-Iodobenzylguanidine↗

The effect of ramipril, a new angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor on cortical nephron flow and effective renal plasma flow in patients with essential hypertension.

A placebo-controlled study of Ramipril on total and intrarenal flow distribution was carried out in 7 patients with essential hypertension. Cortical nephron flow was measured using radiolabelled tubular secreted radiopharmaceuticals 123I orthoidohippurate or 99mTc mercaptoacetyl triglycine by the transit time distribution technique. Both systolic and diastolic blood pressure were reduced significantly by Ramipril without significant changes in an index of cardiac output or in effective renal plasma flow. Cortical nephron flow increased from 207 +/- 7 to 257 +/- 21 ml/min (mean +/- SEM) p less than 0.05 and the percentage of flow to cortical nephrons increased by 6% (p = 0.05). Ramipril corrects the reduced cortical nephron flow found in essential hypertension.

Adult↗