Evaluation of five miniature chromatography systems for determining labeling efficiency of technetium Tc 99m pentetate.

The reliability and reproducibility of five miniature chromatography systems for the radiochemical purity of 99mTc-labeled technetium Tc 99m pentetate was evaluated. Radiochemical purity of technetium Tc 99m pentetate was determined 15-30 minutes after preparation once a month for nine consecutive months. A reference value was determined by gel filtration or by conventional-length paper chromatography and thin-layer chromatography. Radiochemical purity was determined simultaneously by five miniature chromatography systems. The miniature systems included an in-house system and commercial systems distributed by Ackerman Nuclear, Ashley Innovations, Atomic Products, and Technical Advancement. Each miniature system was tested in duplicate. A follow-up comparison of the Ackerman Nuclear and in-house systems was performed for an additional nine months. Labeling efficiency by the reference method was greater than 97% for all nine months. The miniature systems gave results that were comparable in most months. Very low labeling efficiency occurred with the Ackerman Nuclear system in month 9. The follow-up comparison produced only one unconfirmed result for the Ackerman Nuclear system that would have caused a laboratory to erroneously discard a batch of technetium Tc 99m pentetate. The miniature chromatography systems evaluated generally will give reliable and reproducible results for the radiochemical purity of technetium Tc 99m pentetate for nine months after receipt of the systems.