Salivary gland uptake of gallium-67 citrate after sialography

Sialography may cause greatly increased Ga-67 activity within otherwise normal salivary glands. Five patients are presented in whom sialography with oily contrast material injected 8-26 days before Ga-67 imaging produced strongly positive examinations. In each patient it appears that sialography rather than pre-existing pathologic conditions accounted for the increased activity. Sialography-induced subclinical sialadenitis may be the mechanism for the phenomenon.