[Thallium scintigraphy of the myocardium. I. Principles and methods]

Thallium scintigraphy of myocardium is a diagnostic method of nuclear medicine which enables visualization of well perfused and vital tissue of myocardium by means of 201thallium absorbed by its cells. In the first part of the review the authors present various radiopharmaceuticals having been used in this area. Physical properties are described in greater detail as well as preparation and pharmacokinetics of 201thallium. The method of examination is described in its basic form, but also some special cases of detection and evaluation are presented, such as ECG-synchronised thallium scintigraphy of myocardium and one-photon transaxial tomography.