Classification of Tc-99m DTPA perfusion time-activity curves in renal transplant recipients

Abstract

IMPAIRMENT OF CIRCULATION is an early event in the course of allograft dysfunction and usually precedes functional derangement. Consequently, assessment of perfusion in the early posttransplantation period is of the utmost importance. The count rates over the graft in intravenous angiography with radiolabeled agents depend on the vascular transit of the radiotracer and the total vascular volume of the kidney. Both radionuclide imaging and Doppler ultrasonography (DUS) have proven diagnostic value in the evaluation of renal transplant perfusion. In normal-functioning grafts, perfusion time-activity curves derived from Tc99m-DTPA scans show a peak and a plateau, a pattern that is not demonstrated when tubular agents are used. The aims of this study were to classify perfusion time-activity curves on Tc-99m DTPA renal scans based on the peak and plateau pattern and to correlate each pattern with biopsy results.