Scintigraphic abnormalities in glycogen storage disease.

Fifteen patients with glycogen-storage disease type 1 (von Gierke's disease) were evaluated by serial scintigraphy, with a clearly recognizable pattern of an enlarged liver with diminished radionuclide accumulation, splenomegaly with considerably increased uptake and renomegaly. In seven of these patients with GSD-1 scintigraphy demonstrated focal defects of varying size. Small or stable defects suggest benign hepatic adenomata, whereas malignant change occurred in growing large lesions. The potential malignant end-point of hepatic-cell carcinoma in GSD-1 warrants careful serial liver scintigraphy with scintiangiography on a routine basis.