Nuclear medicine communications
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Behçet's disease (BD) is a multisystem disorder that is characterized by vasculitis, and consists of a triad of recurrent ulcers of the oral and genital mucosa with relapsing uveitis. The prevalence of pulmonary involvement varies in the range of 1-10% in various studies, and its complications are severe and life threatening. To objectively assess the degree of pulmonary vascular endothelial damage in BD, the lung uptake, and the clearance rate of technetium-99m-hexamethylpropylene amine oxime (Tc-99m-HMPAO) were determined. ⋯ The degree of pulmonary vascular endothelial damage was represented as increased L/Li ratios and decreased lung clearance rate measured on the Tc-99m-HMPAO lung scan in patients with BD. Our results indicated that determining the T1/2 values and the L/Li ratios on Tc-99m-HMPAO lung imaging should be an objective method to assess subclinical pulmonary damage even in the early stages of BD in the patients.