Body disappearance and liver mean transit time of 99m-Tc-diethyl-IDA

The body disappearances and the liver mean transit times of a hepatobiliary tracer, 99mTc-diethyl IDA, were measured from 100 cholescintigraphies of 98 patients. Fifteen patients had no hepatobiliary disease; their mean body disappearance was 6.6, SD 1.1%/min, and mean liver mean transit time 32, SD 19 min. The values within 2 SDs, disappearance greater than or equal to 4.4%/min and mean transit time less than or equal to 70 min, were used as reference values. Disappearance constants below 4.4%/min were observed 29% and mean transit times exceeding 70 min in 49% of the examinations performed on patients with some hepatobiliary abnormality. The calculated parameters were compared with the levels of serum bilirubin and ASAT. Disappearance constants below 4.4%/min were seen in 33% and mean transit times exceeding 70 min in 55% of the patients who had either abnormal serum bilirubin or ASAT due to a hepatobiliary disease. The correlation between the serum bilirubin and the disappearance was -0.13, and between ASAT and body disappearance it was -0.28. The corresponding correlation coefficients of serum bilirubin and ASAT with the liver mean transit times were 0.33 and 0.44. Long mean transit times in relation to bilirubin and ASAT were seen in some acute cases. Short mean transit times in relation to bilirubin and ASAT were seen with falling serum levels of the latter.