OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the sensitivity of the interstitial lymphoscintigraphy in the visualization of the thoracic duct confluence. METHOD: We analyzed 535 lymphoscintigraphies performed at the Nuclear Medicine Department of the Hospital das Clínicas at the Universidade Federal de Pernambuco from 1993 to 1999. All tests were performed through the subcutaneous injection, in the first interdigital space of each foot, of 1 ml of the Dextran 500 labeled with Technetium-99m. MRESULTS: The thoracic duct confluence was visualized in 424 patients, which represent 79.3% of the lymphoscintigraphies performed. Considering the gender, the thoracic duct confluence was visualized in 191 females patients (77% of the cases) and in 233 males patients (80.9% of the cases). CONCLUSION: This report confirms the importance of the interstitial lymphoscintigraphy as the test choice for the assessment of the lymphatic circulation and demonstrates that this test has a high sensitivity to visualize the thoracic duct confluence.
lymphography; thoracic duct; lymphatic system
