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Oral Administration of ¹³¹I by Semiautomatic Pipette to a Patient with Severe Swallowing Difficulties: A Case Report

¹Nuclear Medicine Section, Radiology Department, Albany Medical College, Albany, New York; and ²Pharmacy Department, Albany Medical College, Albany, New York

As an alternative method of oral administration of ¹³¹I to a patient with quadriplegia and severe swallowing difficulties, we introduced, into the back of the patient’s mouth, a 200-µL laboratory pipette containing 74 MBq (2 mCi) of ¹³¹I-sodium iodide in a 76-µL aqueous solution and delivered its contents. The procedure was repeated a few days later with a 1,000-µL laboratory pipette to administer 1.48 GBq (40 mCi) of ¹³¹I-sodium iodide in a 270-µL aqueous solution. The patient tolerated both procedures well. The pipette permitted accurate measurement of both dosages and complete (greater than 99.9%) delivery of the tracer in a small volume to the back of the patient’s mouth, as documented by assay of the empty pipette after use. In patients with swallowing difficulties, use of the pipette constitutes a safe and efficient means to deliver ¹³¹I-sodium iodide by the oral route.

Key Words: ¹³¹I; oral administration; swallowing difficulty; tracer delivery