Extensive gastric varices demonstrated by technetium-99m red blood cell scintigraphy

An alcohol abuse patient complicated by chronic pancreatitis had splenic vein thrombosis leading to gastric varices and underwent abdominal Tc-99m red blood cell scintigraphy. First pass study, sequential images up to 1 hour, and a 2.5 hour image showed abnormal radioactivity in the left side of the abdomen and midabdomen. In 24 hour images, the high level of activity in the left side persisted; in addition, there was accumulation of radioactivity in the cecum, ascending, transverse colon, the splenic flexure, and descending colon. A splenectomy was performed and during the surgical procedure, a large dilated vein in the greater omentum was noted. It is reemphasized that delayed imaging up to 24 hours is important when the results of earlier images are equivocal or negative.