Attenuation Artifact During Myocardial SPECT Imaging Secondary to Saline and Silicone Breast Implants

Abstract

Breast attenuation artifacts are a major cause of false-positive results in gated single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) studies in women. The presence of a saline or silicone breast implant as a foreign object anterior to the heart will increase the likelihood of these attenuation artifacts. Recently, the US Food and Drug Administration approved silicone implants for cosmetic use again in the United States. This brief report highlights the impact of breast implants on the accuracy of diagnostic cardiac SPECT imaging.