[Nuclear medicine diagnosis of heart involvement in progressive systemic scleroderma]

The frequency and extent of heart involvement in progressive systemic scleroderma (PSS) can be underestimated when current clinical diagnostic methods are used. We therefore studied 53 PSS patients with planar (201Tl) chloride myocardial scintigraphy, and 44 PSS patients with radionuclide ventriculography using red blood cells labeled in vitro with 99mTc. Comparison of maximal exercise and resting myocardial scans demonstrated pathologic findings in 18 of 38 patients. In 10% of the patients abnormal ejection fraction values (less than 50%) and Fourier analysis were found on radionuclide ventriculography. Myocardial scintigraphy in conjunction with other diagnostic modalities thus provides useful information for the evaluation of heart involvement in PSS.