lndium-111 Labeled Purified Granulocytes in the Diagnosis of Synthetic Vascular Graft Infection

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Abstract
Indium-111 labeled leukocytes have been shown to be useful in the diagnosis of synthetic vascular graft infection. To minimize the potential effects of labeled red blood cells and platelets on image interpretation, the authors prepared purified autologous granulocytes (PG) from 84 ml of blood using Volex enhanced gravity sedimentation and Ficoll-Hypaque double density centrifigation. The labeling efficiency of PG with in-111 tropolone was 90 .+-. 9% (mean .+-. SD). Imaging was performed 18-24 hours following injection of approximately 445 microcuries of In-111 PG in 26 patients with suspected infection of vascular grafts that had been implanted 12 days to 12 years prior to the study. In ten patients with proven graft infection, seven had positive In-111 PG scans. Ten of 11 patients without infection had negative scans. In five patients with clinically equivocal findings, scan results were positive in one, negative in one, and equivocal in three. A false-positive scan occurred in a patient with an uninfected inflammatory pseduoaneurysm of an aortic graft. These results confirm an earlier report that In-111 PG imaging is a useful technique in the diagnosis of synthetic vascular graft infection.