World health organisation inter-laboratory comparison study in 12 countries on quality performance of nuclear medicine imaging devices

Twelve countries participated in the WHO intercomparison for which transmission CAP (College of American Pathologists) brain and CAP liver phantoms and emission London liver phantoms were used. A total of 157 imaging devices were tested. Overall results from the phantoms revealed a wide range of targets detected. For the CAP-phantoms target detectability dropped below 50% for target sizes less than 9 mm and below 60% for target contrast less than 0.84:1. On average one false positive and six false negative results were reported using CAP-brain phantoms and one false positive and one false negative result using CAP-liver phantoms. For the London liver phantoms containing the tissue equivalent rubber abdominal simulation the target of 1 cm was never visualised. Two targets in this phantom (2 cm and 2.5 cm) were correctly identified in 34% of studies and one of these targets in 52% of studies. Equivocal and false positive results were reported in 42%. The WHO inter-comparison demonstrated the need to establish new, or to improve the existing, quality control programmes.