The gastric 99mTc clearance--a technique for the evaluation of the gastric blood flow

The gastric mucosa blood flow was investigated using the 99mTc clearance. Besides the clearance the "R" ratio, total radioactivity of the gastric juice and the volume of gastric juice (ml/15 min) were also investigated. The main characteristics of the method are its reproducibility and the parallelism existing between: clearance, the "R" ratio and total radioactivity. The parameters investigated reach a maximum 30-45 min after administration of 99mTc; consequently, to evaluate gastric blood flow, it is sufficient to determine the parameters at this time interval. The 99mTc clearance represents an accessible method for the evaluation blood circulation in the gastric mucosa.