A comparison of two technetium-99m-labeled radiopharmaceuticals for lymphoscintigraphy: concise communication.

A comparison of stannous phytate and antimony sulfide colloid, both labeled with Tc-99m, was conducted during the performance of internal mammary lymphoscintigraphy in 46 patients. Thirteen of these patients were randomized to receive both radiotracers in two consecutive studies. The results indicated a statistical difference between agents; Tc-99m antimony sulfide allowed visualization of a greater number of more intense nodes, better delineation of the total length of the internal mammary lymph-node chain, and a more consistent visualization of supraclavicular nodes. Although previously published animal data suggest utility of Tc-99m stannous phytate for lymph-node imaging, Tc-99m antimony sulfide was shown in this clinical comparison to provide a more reliable representation of lymph-node anatomy.