Proficiency tests in the determination of activity of radionuclides in radiopharmaceutical products measured by nuclear medicine services in 8 years of comparison programmes in Brazil.

Proficiency tests were applied to assess the performance of 74 nuclear medicine services in activity measurements of (131)I, (123)I, (99)Tc(m), (67)Ga and (201)Tl. These tests produced 913 data sets from comparison programmes promoted by the National Laboratory for Ionizing Radiation Metrology (LNMRI) from 1999 to 2006. The data were evaluated against acceptance criteria for accuracy and precision and assigned as Acceptable or Not acceptable accordingly. In addition, three other statistical parameters were used as complementary information for performance evaluation which related to normative requirements and to radionuclide calibrators. The results have shown a necessity to improve quality control procedures and unsatisfactory performances of radionuclide calibrators, which incorporate Geiger-Müller detectors.