Normal appearances of technetium-99m dimercaptosuccinic acid in children on planar imaging

Thirty-two children who underwent renal arteriography with normal results a lso underwent technetium-99m dimercaptosuccinic acid (DMSA) imaging. Variat ions in the normal appearance of Tc-99m-DMSA images ape described in these children. Criteria for high-quality Tc-99m DMSA images are defined in terms of kidney outline and contrast between the inner and the outer part of the kidney. Most of the images in this study were of high quality. The two mos t common features of normal Tc-99m-DMSA images were a round-shaped (50%) or flat (either lateral or medial aspect) (24.8%) contour. A small number of unusual appearances were observed and these have been illustrated. The mean differential function of the left kidney was 51% with a range of 45%-57%.