THE ROLE OF NUCLEAR MEDICINE IMAGING IN OBJECTIVE EVALUATION OF CONGENITAL RENAL DISORDERS: CASE REPORT SERIES
Keywords:
Urinary tract, Congenital anomalies, Nuclear medicine methods, 99mTc DMSA, 99mTc DTPAAbstract
Congenital anomalies of the kidneys and urinary tract (CAKUT) represent an alarming cause of chronic kidney disease among children. Management of these anomalies requires a palette of diagnostic methods, including imaging techniques like ultrasonography, cistouretrography, computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging, which provide detailed information about the structural integrity of the kidneys and urinary tract. Nuclear medicine plays an important complementary role to these studies as it provides clinicians with irreplaceable data concerning the function and integrity of the kidneys and urinary tract. This case series highlights the contribution of nuclear medicine in the management of these anomalies. The aim was to address the gap created by the limited availability of pediatric case series that systematically document congenital renal anomalies using nuclear medicine methods. We present a series of five pediatric patients referred to the Institute of Pathophysiology and Nuclear Medicine in Skopje for nuclear medicine renal studies. In three of the cases static 99mTc DMSA scintigraphy was utilized to evaluate patient’s cortical integrity, renal structure and position as well as differential renal function. In contrast, the other cases represent the role of 99mTc DTPA dynamic renal scintigraphy in the assessment of renal perfusion, drainage and response to diuretic stimulation. Across all cases, renal scintigraphy provided essential and objective metrics that later aided in clinician’s management of the patients.
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Copyright (c) 2026 Filip Nikolovski , Julia Kościanek , Akhmed Surkhaev, Lorenzo Crescenzi Lanna , Tanja Makazlieva
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