Left ventricular stroke volume determinations from radionuclide ventriculograms: the effects of photon attenuation

To improve the accuracy of scintigraphic ventricular volume determination, which is limited by photon attenuation between the heart and the gamma camera, a method was developed for directly measuring the photon attenuation of radioactivity delivered as a bolus through a Swan-Ganz catheter into the right atrium. Comparison of the count rate recovered from this bolus with the total ex vivo measured activity determined by imaging an aliquot of the administered activity allowed calculation of the attenuation factor. Left ventricular stroke volumes determined scintigraphically by the count method in gated blood pool studies and then corrected with this attenuation factor correlated well with stroke volumes determined from thermodilution cardiac output and heart rate (r = 0.92; SEE, 6.1 ml). The agreement between the two measurements was markedly less when an average attenuation factor was employed for correction of scintigraphic volumes (r = 0.52; SEE, 14.8 ml). The results indicate that correction for photon attenuation is needed for accurate measurement of left ventricular volumes. Correction of left ventricular counts based on body weight or body surface area improves the accuracy of volume estimates.