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Medical Imaging
Nuclear Medicine Exams
 Nuclear Medicine uses a small amount of radioactive materials to diagnose and treat a variety of diseases. Differing from x-ray, which demonstrates anatomy or structure, Nuclear Medicine provides information on how parts of the body function. The radioactive material is administered by IV injection, inhalation and/or by mouth. The radioactive material is attracted to specific organs, bones or tissues in the body. Special cameras are used to detect the location of the radioactive material.
Nuclear Medicine is safe and painless. Reactions to the radioactive material are rare. However, prior to the administration of any radioactive material, it is important to know and tell your physician and the Nuclear Medicine Technologist if you are pregnant or nursing. Special precautions or a delay in performing your procedure may be necessary. The most common procedures are described below.
Heart Perfusion Scan with Stress Test | Hepatobiliary With or Without Ejection Fraction
Bone Scan | Thyroid Uptake and Scan
Why This Procedure is Done: Heart perfusion scan is performed to evaluate narrowing (atherosclerosis) of the coronary arteries, which supply blood to the heart muscle.
Preparation: No caffeine for 24 hours prior to the exam. The meal prior to your exam should be low fat, and you should have nothing by mouth 4-6 hours before the exam. Continuation of medication is determined by your physician.
How the Procedure is Performed: A small needle will be placed into a vein in your arm or hand. A radioactive agent will be dispensed through the needle. The radioactivity circulates approximately 45 minutes. After this waiting period, there will be a 16 minute scan to look at the blood flow to the heart muscle. During the scan you will lie on your back with both arms resting above your head. After the first set of images you will have a stress test.
There are two ways to do the stress test: exercise on a treadmill, or you will be given medication to mimic exercise. Your physician will determine which type of stress test you will have. Whichever type of stress test you have, a second injection of radioactivity will be given. You will return to the Nuclear Medicine area for a second set of images, similar to the first. The rest and exercise images are compared to determine sufficient blood supply to the heart during exercise. A decrease in blood supply can be the source of chest pain and narrowing of the coronary artery, which could be a source of future heart attack.
How Long the Procedure Takes: Please allow approximately 3 hours for your appointment.
Hepatobiliary With or Without Ejection Fraction
Why This Procedure is Done: This procedure is done to evaluate the function of the liver, biliary tree, gallbladder, and bile ducts for possible obstruction. It may also be used to evaluate contraction of the gallbladder, which if abnormal may justify surgical removal.
Preparation: Nothing by mouth 4-6 hours before the exam. No Dilaudid for 18-24 hours before the exam. No other narcotics for a minimum of 8 hours before the exam.
How the Procedure is Performed: A Hepatobiliary scan uses radioactivity to obtain images of the liver, biliary tree and gallbladder. The radioactivity is administered through a needle in a vein in your arm. There are no side effects to the injection. Images are taken for one hour. You will lie on your back. There are small breaks if you need to move during the scan. After the hour if any ejection fraction is requested, we ask you to drink a serving of Ensure Plus and return in 60 minutes for an additional image. This allows us to determine how well your gallbladder contracts.
How Long the Procedure Takes: Please allow approximately 60-120 minutes for your appointment.
Bone Scan - Whole Body or Three Phase
 Why This Procedure is Done: This procedure is done to obtain functional images of your bone and joint structure. It is generally performed to evaluate skeletal pain, possible tumor or bone infections.
Preparation: There is no preparation for this procedure.
How the Procedure is Performed: A radioactive injection is given into a vein, which circulates for two to three hours. There are no side effects to the injection. After this waiting period, images can then be obtained of a specific area or from head to toe. At your physician's request, we may also review blood flow to a specific area such as the feet or hands. This review will occur by taking images during the injection.
How Long the Procedure Takes: Please allow approximately 30-90 minutes for your appointment.
Thyroid Uptake and Scan
Why This Procedure is Done: This procedure images the structure and measures the function of your thyroid gland. The images will determine if the thyroid is homogeneous or if it has nodules within the gland. The function or uptake portion of the procedure will determine if your thyroid is overactive (hyperthyroid), normal (euthyroide) or underactive (hypothyroid). It is a two day test.
Preparation: You should not have x-ray procedures with IV contrast 6-8 weeks prior to this exam. Routinely you will be asked to discontinue your thyroid medication. The time varies with the type of medication. Your appointment will be scheduled accordingly. The first day you will be asked to swallow a capsule with radioactive iodine. This begins the function part of the test. You will be asked to return the following day for completion of the function portion and imaging.
How the Procedure is Performed: We will use a special machine to determine function or see how much of the radioactive iodine has been absorbed by your thyroid gland. The second part of this test is a thyroid scan. For this, an injection is given into a vein of a different radioactive isotope. This is allowed to circulate for about 15 minutes before images are obtained. Four images are obtained to determine size and homogeneity (all areas functioning equally). The images are coordinated with the uptake information to assist the Radiologist in providing a diagnosis.
How Long the Procedure Takes: Please allow approximately 20-30 minutes for day one of your appointment and 30-60 minutes for day two of your appointment.
3/2/2007
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