'Radioisotope arteriography' as an adjunct to the brain scan

The brain scan is now widely employed for the evaluation of patients with suspected intracranial lesions. It is a simple, safe, relatively accurate diagnostic procedure and may be used both to screen patients and to complement cerebral arteriography and air studies in the identification of intracranial lesions. Although not as accurate as the latter two procedures in the detection of intracranial pathology (1–3), the brain scan has the decided advantages of lower patient morbidity, better demonstration of the extent of the lesion, availability on an out-patient basis, and a simplicity that makes its repeated use practical in following the course of a disease. In spite of its value, the brain scan has two major disadvantages: (a) it fails to localize all intracranial lesions, particularly those related to occlusive vascular disease, and (b) a positive scan alone is not sufficient to accurately identify the etiology of the lesion (tumor vs. infarction, etc.). The introduction of the scintillation camera has...