A MINIATURIZED RAPID PAPER CHROMATOGRAPHIC PROCEDURE FOR QUALITY-CONTROL OF TC-99M SESTAMIBI

A miniaturized rapid paper chromatographic technique (MRPC) for qualit y control of a technetium-99m sestamibi preparation was developed and compared with the manufacturer's and Hung et al. techniques. The MRPC system involves the use of 6.0 x 0.5 cm Whatman 3MM paper strip develo ped in ethyl acetate. The procedure was completed within 3 min while t hat of the manufacturer and Hung techniques took 30-35 and 4 min respe ctively. The R(f) range of Tc-99m-sestamibi using MRPC was 0.55-0.75 w hile that of the other two techniques was 0.9-1.0. The results indicat e that MRPC can be used to separate Tc-99m-sestamibi from any Tc-99m c ontaminant that migrates with the solvent front. The MRPC is a fast an d effective chromatographic technique for routine quality control test ing of Tc-99m-sestamibi preparation.