Evaluation of inferior mesenteric vein blood flow circulation with per-rectal administration of thallium-201 and technetium-99m pertechnetate

We administered both per-rectal thallium-201 (201Tl) and technetium-99m pertechnetate (99mTc) to patients with liver diseases in order to understand the abnormalities of inferior mesenteric vein (IMV) blood flow circulation. As 201Tl heart-to-liver uptake ratio (H:L), reflecting the degree of portal-systemic shuntings (PSS), increased, the visualization of IMV in general became poor on 99mTc scintigrams. 201Tl H:L in the group with no visualization of IMV on 99mTc scintigrams was significantly higher than in the group with clear visualization of IMV (p less than 0.001). However, there were patients who showed IMV visualization among those with high 201Tl H:L. In these patients, it was considered that IMV blood flowed in the normograde direction, escaping mainly through PSS at the upper part of the portal system, and resulting in elevated H:L. In the patients without IMV visualization, IMV blood flowed in the retrograde direction, escaping mainly through collaterals at the lower part of IMV. Inferior vena cava (IVC) was visualized on 99mTc scintigrams in some patients without IMV visualization, indicating the presence of collaterals from the distal part of IMV to IVC. Per-rectal studies using these two radiotracers can afford us useful informations on the abnormalities of IMV blood flow hemodynamics in patients with liver diseases