Clinical usefulness of a gamma probe and a hand-held gamma camera in minimally invasive radioguided parathyroidectomy

To perform minimally invasive parathyroidectomy, the clinical usefulness of a gamma probe and a hand-held gamma camera was examined. In an experimental study with a model source, the rate of detection of parathyroid lesions was significantly better in conventionally used scintigraphy than with a hand-held gamma camera and a gamma probe. In a clinical study based on 28 patients with primary hyperparathyroidism, the detection rate was not significantly different among three methods. This study concluded that a hand-held gamma camera and a gamma probe were useful in performing a minimally invasive parathyroidectomy, but a definite limit to detectability was found in small parathyroid masses. Further study is needed to improve the detectability of a parathyroid mass with these methods. (author)