Regional perfusion, glucose metabolism, and wall motion in patients with chronic electrocardiographic Q wave infarctions: evidence for persistence of viable tissue in some infarct regions by positron emission tomography.

Positron-emission tomography with 13N-ammonia and 18F-2-deoxyglucose was used to assess regional perfusion and glucose utilization in 31 chronic electrocardiographic Q wave regions in 20 patients. With previously published criteria, regions of infarction were identified by a concordant reduction in regional perfusion and glucose utilization, and regions of ischemia were identified by preservation of glucose utilization in regions of diminished perfusion. Only 10 of the 31 regions (32%) exhibited myocardial infarction tomographically. In contrast, positron tomography revealed ischemia in six regions (20%) and was normal in 15 regions (48%). Even when Q wave regions were reassigned and consolidated to enhance the specificity of the electrocardiogram, uptake of 18F-2-deoxyglucose was noted in the majority (54%) of the regions. Neither electrocardiographic ST-T changes nor severity of associated wall motion abnormality reliably distinguished tomographically identified regions of ischemia from infarction. Thus positron tomography reveals evidence of persistent tissue metabolism in a high proportion of chronic electrocardiographic Q wave regions, and commonly used clinical tests do not reliably distinguish hypoperfused but viable regions from tomographically defined regions of myocardial infarction.