What is Nuclear Medicine?
Nuclear medicine is a unique method of imaging that is used to painlessly diagnose, determine the severity of, and treat diseases. This form of imaging is known for its ability to detect diseases in their earliest stages, often before symptoms occur or other imaging methods reveal issues.
In order for the exam to visualize an area of the body, patients are given radiotracers, a special medicine that is injected, inhaled or swallowed. The radiotracer includes a very small amount of radioactive material, allowing the machine to create images of a desired area of the body.
Why might you need Nuclear Medicine?
Nuclear Medicine is a very helpful tool that can be used to evaluate an abundant number of diseases and areas of the body. A few of the reasons someone may undergo this exam would be to examine:
- The heart for signs of heart disease or to see the effects of a heart attack
- The brain to detect diseases such as Alzheimer’s or investigate the cause of symptoms such as seizures or memory loss
- Several types of cancers in order to identify the stage or evaluate the effectiveness of treatment
Nuclear medicine can also be used as a treatment method for some diseases, including certain cancers and diseases associated with the thyroid.
Should you be concerned about Radiation Exposure?
Absolutely not! This is a very common concern among patients, but you have nothing to worry about. The radiotracer that is used to help the machine see an area of your body includes a very small amount of radioactive material, less than 1/10th of a billionth of an ounce. The total amount of radiation a patient is exposed to during this exam is less than or equal to the amount of natural background radiation any American receives naturally in a year.
Additionally, keep in mind that if your doctor requests a Nuclear Medicine exam, he or she believes that the health benefits of the exam outweigh the small health risks associated with radiation exposure.
Which Nuclear Medicine exams are offered at Clermont Radiology?
- Bone Scan
- 3 Phase Bone Scan
- Gastric Emptying
- HIDA Scan
- Thyroid Uptake & Scan
- Liver/Spleen Scan
- MUGA
- First Pass MUGA
- Renal Function
- Renal Function w/ Lasix
- Renal Function w/ Captopril
- Parathyroid
- Quantitative Lung Scan
- Salivary Gland Scan
- Testicular Scan
- DaT Scan
- HIDA w/CCK