The Role of Radionuclide Imaging in Congenital Heart Disease

Purpose of Review: Congenital heart disease is a growing healthcare issue since the majority of children who underwent surgical repair are now surviving into adult life. However, these patients are generally fixed but not cured and many will go on to develop significant morbidity as adults. The purpose of this review is to discuss the utility of radionuclide imaging in the management of these patients with a focus on the longer-term follow-up into adult life. Recent Findings: Radionuclide imaging is a relatively niche tool in the management of congenital heart disease patients and many of the techniques have been around for decades. What is new is the application of techniques such as fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) imaging for endocarditis and device infection using anatomic colocalization by MR-PET or PET-CT. There is also growing interest in the quantitative assessment of coronary blood flow with tracers such as rubidium that are available without the need for a cyclotron on site. This is likely to be very useful in the management of patients with coronary anomalies or surgically re-implanted coronary arteries. Summary: Radionuclide imaging has specific but rather limited application to congenital heart disease at the current time. With the development of new molecular imaging agents, low-dose protocols, and the wider availability of hybrid imaging modalities, we suggest that the ground is prepared for a resurgence of interest in the application of these techniques to the population of patients living with congenital heart disease. © 2017, Springer Science+Business Media, LLC.