Intravenous dipyridamole technetium-99m MMI myocardial perfusion scintigraphy for detection of coronary artery disease.

To evaluate the efficacy of stress technetium-99m MMI (N-2-methoxy-2-methyl propyl isonitrile) myocardial perfusion scintigraphy (Tc-99m MMI) using intravenous dipyridamole for detection of coronary artery disease (CAD), we collected 66 cases (53 men, 13 women, aged 40-79 years old) between Sept. 1990 and Oct. 1991. The cases were divided into two groups: group I involving 44 patients received coronary arteriography (CAG) examination without previous percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty (PTCA) or coronary artery bypass graft (CABG); group II embracing 22 patients received no CAG examination but all were suffering from old myocardial infarction (MI) evidenced by history and electrocardiography (ECG). All cases underwent Tc-99m MMI planar and single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) both on intravenous dipyridamole stress and separate day rest tests. Of the 44 group I patients receiving both Tc-99m MMI and CAG, 35 (79.5%) were positive and 7 (16%) were negative by both tests and another 2 (4.5%) were positive by CAG only. Of those positive by both tests, 21 (60%) suffered from identical coronary arterial involvement, including 13 one-vessel disease, 5 double-vessel disease and 3 triple-vessel disease. Of group II patients, 14 suffered from old inferior wall (IW) MI, 6 from old anterior or anteroseptal wall (AW) MI, 1 from old lateral wall (LW) MI and another 1 from combined old anterior and lateral wall (ALW) MI by ECG. Of the 14 patients with IWMI by ECG, all suffered from right coronary artery (RCA) disease but 7 (50%) of them from multivessel disease (MVD) by Tc-99m MMI. 5 of the 6 patients with AWMI by ECG suffered from left anterior descending coronary artery (LAD) disease, but 3 of them from MVD by Tc-99m MMI. Both patients with LWMI and ALWMI by ECG suffered from triple-vessel disease by Tc-99m MMI. The sensitivity of Tc-99m MMI in detecting CAD in group I was 95%, the specificity was 100%. The sensitivity for detection of individual coronary artery disease in LAD, left circumflex coronary artery (LCX) and RCA was 96%, 45% and 89% in this order and the respective specificity was 94%, 100% and 88%. In group II the sensitivity was 95%. The overall sensitivity of intravenous dipyridamole Tc-99m MMI for detection of CAD in groups I and II was 95%; specificity was 100% and accuracy was 95%. In conclusion, stress Tc-99m MMI using intravenous dipyridamole is a valuable method for evaluation and detection of CAD.