INTRAVENOUS AMINOHYDROXYPROPYLIDENE BISPHOSPHONATE DOES NOT MODIFY TC-99M-HYDROXYMETHYLENE BISPHOSPHONATE BONE-SCINTIGRAPHY - A PROSPECTIVE-STUDY

Bisphosphonates have marked affinity for bone that makes them useful i n both the treatment and imaging of bone lesions, Bone scintigraphy is very sensitive for the detection of bone metastases, which can cause life-threatening hypercalcemia requiring emergency treatment, This pro spective study was done to determine whether intravenous administratio n of pamidronate, a second-generation bisphosphonate used to treat hyp ercalcemia, affects the affinity of the radiopharmaceutical (99m) tech netium-labeled hydroxymethylene bisphosphonate (Tc-99m-HMDP) for bone and bone lesions, Six patients with metastatic bone disease and five w ith Paget's disease of bone had a Tc-99m-HMDP bone scan before and two to four days after an intravenous infusion of pamidronate. The number and activity of metastatic bone lesions were unchanged after pamidron ate, even when the second bone scan was done only 24 hours after the p amidronate infusion, Our data suggest that emergency treatment of life -threatening hypercalcemia by intravenous pamidronate does not decreas e the sensitivity of subsequent bone scanning done to detect bone meta stases.