Determination of infarct size in rats with 86rubidium

A quick method is presented which allows the determination of infarct sizes within hearts of experimental animals like rats. The method is based on the drop of 86Rb uptake in infarcted hearts, and has been compared with infarct sizes determined morphometrically. The standard deviation of this method is low (6.5%) because an internal standard in used (noninfarcted myocard - usually right ventricle tissue - has been used).