Skip to main content
Log in

EANM procedure guidelines for brain neurotransmission SPECT using 123I-labelled dopamine transporter ligands, version 2

  • Guidelines
  • Published:
European Journal of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

These guidelines summarize the current views of the European Association of Nuclear Medicine Neuroimaging Committee (ENC). The aim of the guidelines is to assist nuclear medicine practitioners when making recommendations, performing, interpreting, and reporting the results of clinical dopamine transporter (DAT) single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) studies using 123I-labelled radiopharmaceuticals. The aim is to achieve a high-quality standard of DAT SPECT imaging, which will increase the diagnostic impact of this technique in neurological practice. The present document is an update of the 2002 guidelines [1] and has been guided by the views of various national societies: the Task Group Neuro-Nuclear-Medicine of the German Society of Nuclear Medicine [2], a consensus statement of the imaging centres included in the “Kompetenznetz-Parkinson” sponsored by the German Federal Ministry of Education, and the Task Group of Neuro-Nuclear-Medicine of the French Society of Nuclear Medicine [3]. The guidelines reflect the individual experience of experts in European countries. The guidelines are intended to present information specifically adapted to European practice. The information provided should be taken in the context of local conditions and regulations.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. Tatsch K, Asenbaum S, Bartenstein P, Catafau A, Halldin C, Pilowsky LS, et al. European Association of Nuclear Medicine procedure guidelines for brain neurotransmission SPET using (123)I-labelled dopamine D(2) transporter ligands. Eur J Nucl Med Mol Imaging 2002;29(10):BP30–5.

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  2. Bartenstein P, Grunwald F, Kuwert T, Tatsch K, Sabri O, Benkert O, et al. Clinical applications of single photon emission tomography in neuromedicine. 1. Neuro-oncology, epilepsy, movement disorders, cerebrovascular disease. Nuklearmedizin 2000;39(7):180–95.

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  3. Payoux P, Baulieu JL, Darcourt J, Guedj E, Habert MO, Prunier C, et al. Guide pour la rédaction de protocoles pour la scintigraphie à l’aide de ligands des transporteurs présynaptiques de la dopamine dans le striatum. Médecine Nucléaire 2008;32:623–5.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  4. Catafau AM. Brain SPECT of dopaminergic neurotransmission: a new tool with proved clinical impact. Nucl Med Commun 2001;22(10):1059–60.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  5. Halldin C, Gulyas B, Langer O, Farde L. Brain radioligands – state of the art and new trends. Q J Nucl Med 2001;45(2):139–52.

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  6. Tatsch K. Imaging of the dopaminergic system in parkinsonism with SPET. Nucl Med Commun 2001;22(7):819–27.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  7. DaTSCAN European Public Assessment Report. 072200en6.pdf and DaTSCAN-H-266-AR-II.pdf, http://www.emea.europa.eu/humandocs/Humans/EPAR/datscan/Datscan.htm.

  8. Benamer TS, Patterson J, Grosset DG, Booij J, de Bruin K, van Royen E, et al. Accurate differentiation of parkinsonism and essential tremor using visual assessment of [123I]-FP-CIT SPECT imaging: the [123I]-FP-CIT study group. Mov Disord 2000;15(3):503–10.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  9. Booij J, Hemelaar TG, Speelman JD, de Bruin K, Janssen AG, van Royen EA. One-day protocol for imaging of the nigrostriatal dopaminergic pathway in Parkinson’s disease by [123I]FPCIT SPECT. J Nucl Med 1999;40(5):753–61.

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  10. Scherfler C, Schwarz J, Antonini A, Grosset D, Valldeoriola F, Marek K, et al. Role of DAT-SPECT in the diagnostic work up of parkinsonism. Mov Disord 2007;22(9):1229–38.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  11. Vlaar AM, van Kroonenburgh MJ, Kessels AG, Weber WE. Meta-analysis of the literature on diagnostic accuracy of SPECT in parkinsonian syndromes. BMC Neurol 2007;7:27.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  12. McKeith I, O’Brien J, Walker Z, Tatsch K, Booij J, Darcourt J, et al. Sensitivity and specificity of dopamine transporter imaging with 123I-FP-CIT SPECT in dementia with Lewy bodies: a phase III, multicentre study. Lancet Neurol 2007;6(4):305–13.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  13. O’Brien JT, Colloby S, Fenwick J, Williams ED, Firbank M, Burn D, et al. Dopamine transporter loss visualized with FP-CIT SPECT in the differential diagnosis of dementia with Lewy bodies. Arch Neurol 2004;61(6):919–25.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  14. Walker Z, Jaros E, Walker RW, Lee L, Costa DC, Livingston G, et al. Dementia with Lewy bodies: a comparison of clinical diagnosis, FP-CIT single photon emission computed tomography imaging and autopsy. J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry 2007;78(11):1176–81.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  15. Booij J, Tissingh G, Boer GJ, Speelman JD, Stoof JC, Janssen AG, et al. [123I]FP-CIT SPECT shows a pronounced decline of striatal dopamine transporter labelling in early and advanced Parkinson’s disease. J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry 1997;62(2):133–40.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  16. Marek KL, Seibyl JP, Zoghbi SS, Zea-Ponce Y, Baldwin RM, Fussell B, et al. [123I]beta-CIT/SPECT imaging demonstrates bilateral loss of dopamine transporters in hemi-Parkinson’s disease. Neurology 1996;46(1):231–7.

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  17. Benamer HT, Patterson J, Wyper DJ, Hadley DM, Macphee GJ, Grosset DG. Correlation of Parkinson’s disease severity and duration with 123I-FP-CIT SPECT striatal uptake. Mov Disord 2000;15(4):692–8.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  18. Marek K, Innis R, van Dyck C, Fussell B, Early M, Eberly S, et al. [123I]{beta}-CIT SPECT imaging assessment of the rate of Parkinson’s disease progression. Neurology 2001;57(11):2089–94.

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  19. Booij J, Kemp P. Dopamine transporter imaging with [(123)I]FP-CIT SPECT: potential effects of drugs. Eur J Nucl Med Mol Imaging 2008;35(2):424–38.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  20. Yang YK, Yao WJ, Yeh TL, Lee IH, Chen PS, Lu RB, et al. Decreased dopamine transporter availability in male smokers-a dual isotope SPECT study. Prog Neuropsychopharmacol Biol Psychiatry 2008;32(1):274–9.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  21. Schillaci O, Pierantozzi M, Filippi L, Manni C, Brusa L, Danieli R, et al. The effect of levodopa therapy on dopamine transporter SPECT imaging with 123I-FP-CIT in patients with Parkinson’s disease. Eur J Nucl Med Mol Imaging 2005;32(12):1452.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  22. Fahn S, Oakes D, Shoulson I, Kieburtz K, Rudolph A, Lang A, et al.; Parkinson Study Group. Levodopa and the progression of Parkinson’s disease. N Engl J Med 2004;351(24):2498–508.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  23. Varrone A, Sansone V, Pellecchia MT, Amboni M, Salvatore E, De Michele G, et al. Comparison between a dual-head and a brain-dedicated SPECT system in the measurement of the loss of dopamine transporters with [(123)I]FP-CIT. Eur J Nucl Med Mol Imaging 2008;35(7):1343–9.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  24. Dobbeleir AA, Hambÿe A-SE, Franken PR. Influence of high-energy photons on the spectrum of iodine-123 with low-and medium-energy collimators: consequences for imaging with 123I-labelled compounds in clinical practice. Eur J Nucl Med Mol Imaging 1999;26(6):655.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  25. Koch W, Hamann C, Welsch J, Popperl G, Radau PE, Tatsch K. Is iterative reconstruction an alternative to filtered backprojection in routine processing of dopamine transporter SPECT studies? J Nucl Med 2005;46(11):1804–11.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  26. Soret M, Koulibaly PM, Darcourt J, Hapdey S, Buvat I. Quantitative accuracy of dopaminergic neurotransmission imaging with (123)I SPECT. J Nucl Med 2003;44(7):1184–93.

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  27. Habraken JB, Booij J, Slomka P, Sokole EB, van Royen EA. Quantification and visualization of defects of the functional dopaminergic system using an automatic algorithm. J Nucl Med 1999;40(7):1091–7.

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  28. Calvini P, Rodriguez G, Inguglia F, Mignone A, Guerra UP, Nobili F. The basal ganglia matching tools package for striatal uptake semi-quantification: description and validation. Eur J Nucl Med Mol Imaging 2007;34(8):1240–53.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  29. Kas A, Payoux P, Habert M-O, Malek Z, Cointepas Y, El Fakhri G, et al. Validation of a standardized normalization template for statistical parametric mapping analysis of 123I-FP-CIT images. J Nucl Med 2007;48(9):1459–67.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  30. Koch W, Radau PE, Hamann C, Tatsch K. Clinical testing of an optimized software solution for an automated, observer-independent evaluation of dopamine transporter SPECT studies. J Nucl Med 2005;46(7):1109–18.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  31. Booij J, Busemann Sokole E, Stabin MG, Janssen AG, de Bruin K, van Royen EA. Human biodistribution and dosimetry of [123I]FP-CIT: a potent radioligand for imaging of dopamine transporters. Eur J Nucl Med 1998;25(1):24–30.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  32. Kuikka JT, Bergstrom KA, Ahonen A, Lansimies E. The dosimetry of iodine-123 labelled 2 beta-carbomethoxy-3 beta-(4-iodophenyl)tropane. Eur J Nucl Med 1994;21(1):53–6.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  33. Seibyl JP, Wallace E, Smith EO, Stabin M, Baldwin RM, Zoghbi S, et al. Whole-body biodistribution, radiation absorbed dose and brain SPECT imaging with iodine-123-beta-CIT in healthy human subjects. J Nucl Med 1994;35(5):764–70.

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgments

The members of the ENC acknowledge the following persons (in alphabetical order) for their advice and contribution to these and previous guidelines: S. Asenbaum, M. Bardiés, P. Bartenstein, A. Bischof Delaloye, R. Boellaard, A. Catafau, L. Friberg, C. Halldin, M. Nowak Lonsdale, L. Pylowski, A. Pupi and M. Seppänen, as well as the EANM Dosimetry and Physics Committee.

Disclaimer

These guidelines summarize the views of the Neuroimaging Committee of the EANM and reflects recommendation for which the EANM cannot be held responsible. The recommendations should be taken in the context of good practice of nuclear medicine and do not substitute for national and international legal or regulatory provisions.

The guidelines have been brought to the attention of the National Societies of Nuclear Medicine.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Jacques Darcourt.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Darcourt, J., Booij, J., Tatsch, K. et al. EANM procedure guidelines for brain neurotransmission SPECT using 123I-labelled dopamine transporter ligands, version 2. Eur J Nucl Med Mol Imaging 37, 443–450 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00259-009-1267-x

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00259-009-1267-x

Keywords

Navigation