Bone Scanning

Abstract

<h3>To the Editor.—</h3> The comments of Freeman et al (235:1965, 1976) concerning Loeffler's interpretation of bone scintigrams (234:1228, 1975) are soundly based and can be supported from the many clinical reports that have appeared in the literature, with one exception. I would suggest that their comments with regard to the clinical significance of the degree of renal uptake of^99mTc phosphate complexes is open to criticism. It has been implied that poor kidney visualization on the skeletal scintigram indicates an enhanced uptake of polyphosphate complex in the skeleton due to the presence of a diffuse pathological process. If this were so, then in the case of a patient with highly active multiple skeletal metastases, such as may occur with prostatic or breast cancer, one would also expect to observe decreased renal activity, but in practice this is not so. Conversely, in cases of reduced skeletal uptake, for instance where