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  • Title: Gastrointestinal bleeding in adult patients with Meckel's diverticulum: the role of technetium 99m pertechnetate scan.
    Author: Lin S, Suhocki PV, Ludwig KA, Shetzline MA.
    Journal: South Med J; 2002 Nov; 95(11):1338-41. PubMed ID: 12540005.
    Abstract:
    Obscure gastrointestinal (GI) bleeding is often challenging for the primary care physician, but with improved diagnostic testing the cause of this blood loss is determined in most patients. However, approximately 5% of the time no underlying cause is found. One common etiology in patients younger than 40 years of age is a Meckel's diverticulum. The technetium 99m pertechnetate scan is the standard test for making this diagnosis. However, the sensitivity of the scan is only 62% in the adult population. In this case report, a patient with profound, hemodynamically significant GI blood loss had multiple negative studies. Subsequently, an abnormal vascular lesion was detected and during exploratory laparotomy, a Meckel's diverticulum was found and removed. Although the technetium pertechnetate scan is falsely negative in a number of cases, there are ways to increase its sensitivity and possibly avoid repeated testing.
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