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About Nuclear Medicine

A nuclear medicine scan uses small amounts of radioactive material injected into a vein, swallowed, or inhaled as a gas that eventually accumulates in the organ or area of the body that needs to be examined. You will need to wait a few minutes, hours, or days before having your scan. This allows the tracer to concentrate in the part of your body being studied. Once the material is absorbed into your body, you can have the scan. The resulting images offer details on both the structure and function of organs and tissues. The heart, lungs, thyroid, gallbladder, liver and bones are frequently imaged in the nuclear medicine suite.

Preparing​ ​for​ ​your​ ​nuclear​ ​medicine​ ​procedure

• Be prepared to provide information about your overall health and any allergies you may have.
• Bring a list of all medications you are taking, including prescribed medications, over the counter medications, herbs, and supplements.
• Follow special diet or medication instructions provided by our office to ensure a quality imaging exam.

Important​ ​Information

Be aware that once you have been given the radioactive material it can take anywhere from several seconds to several days to travel through your body and accumulate in the area to be studied. As a result, imaging may be done immediately, a few hours later or even several days after you have received the radioactive material.
Let your technologists know if you:

• Are​ ​pregnant,​ ​possibly​ ​pregnant,​ ​or​ ​breastfeeding
• Have​ ​had​ ​a​ ​recent​ ​nuclear​ ​medicine​ ​scan
• Have​ ​had​ ​a​ ​recent​ ​barium​ ​study​ ​or​ ​an​ ​x-ray​ ​using​ ​contrast
• Have​ ​any​ ​fractures​ ​or​ ​artificial​ ​joints

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