Nuclear medicine uses very small amounts of radioactive substances, or tracers, to diagnose or treat disease. Tracers are substances that are attracted to specific organs, bones or tissues. When tracers are introduced into the body, they produce emissions. A special type of camera, a scintillation or gamma camera, is used to transform these emissions into images, which provide information about the anatomy and function of the body part being imaged. The radiologist interprets the images to determine the cause of your medical problem.
Length of procedure:
There are a variety of nuclear medicine procedures, but they encompass three principal steps: administering the tracer, obtaining the images and analyzing the images. Some nuclear medicine tests take 45 minutes and some can vary from a few hours to a few days depending upon the type of test.
Preparation prior to procedure:
No preparation is needed except for:
Thyroid Scans - A low iodine diet is necessary for three days prior to an examination. Avoid eating seafood, salt, white bread and dairy products.
Gallbladder and Gastric Emptying study - Do not eat or drink anything six hours prior to the exam.
If you think you may be pregnant, please inform your physician or the technologist before your exam.
If you have a known contrast allergy, please contact your physician or the imaging location where you are having your exam as soon as possible.
Post-exam instructions:
You can resume normal activities right away. If you were asked to temporarily stop taking any medication prior to the test or if your doctor changed your usual dosage because of the test, be sure to ask when and if you should resume taking your medications.
