[Capabilities of 99mTc-pyrphotech single-photon emission computed tomography in combination with myocardial perfusion scintigraphy in the evaluation of inflammatory changes in the heart of patients with persistent atrial fibrillation].

1 , Yu.B. LISHMANOV 1 , R.E. BATALOV 2 99m Tc-MIBI) was performed in accordance with the standard protocol. The scintigrams obtained in both studies were then combined using the applied programs Jet StreamWorkspace Release 2.5 (Philips) and the application Fusion. During invasive intervention, endomyocardial samples were intraoperatively taken from all the patients for histological and immunohistochemical examinations. Results. Abnormal 99mTc-pyrphotech myocardial accumulation was found in 7 (36.8%) of the examinees, multiple foci in 3 cases and single foci in 4. Analysis of perfusion scintigrams indicated that the mean abnormal accumulation of 99m Tc-MIBI in the left ventricle was 3.75±0.88% (maximum 9%).Histological examination of endomyocardial samples from 19 patients with persistent AF verified myocarditisin 4 (21%) patients and myocardial sclerosis concurrent with other abnormalities in 15 (78.9%) patients. Conclusion. Latent lymphocytic or polymorphic cellular myocarditisof viral etiology is a cause of idiopathic AF in 20% of the cases. 99mTc-pyrphotech scintigraphy may be one of the primary noninvasive diagnostic techniques for the detection of myocardial