Nuclear Medicine: Preparation Guidelines
Nuclear Medicine : DaTscan | Preparation Guidelines | Frequently Asked Questions
There are no known allergic reactions or side affects to radiopharmaceuticals we currently use. All Nuclear Medicine exams require the administration of a radiopharmaceutical. In most cases, this is done by injection into a vein and takes a few moments. Thyroid imaging is the exception, where the dose is taken orally. The amount of time between receiving the tracer and actual imaging varies greatly by exam. Except for HIDA (hepatobiliary imaging) no fasting is required.
Nuclear medicine exams expose the patient to relatively small amounts of radiation, however, please inform the technologist or scheduling dept. if you think you may be pregnant
DaTscan
• Are pregnant, nursing, or planning to become pregnant
• Antidepressants (eg, Wellbutrin®, Zoloft®)
WHOLE BODY BONE SCAN
When you schedule an appointment for this examination you will be given two different appointment times, the first will be for an injection only and the second which will be approximately 3 hours later and will be for the actual exam. The injection appointment takes approx 10 minutes and the actual exam takes approx 1 hour. There is no preparation required for this test. We do however recommend that between having the injection and having the procedure that you drink plenty of fluids and urinate frequently. You may leave the facility after your injection, however it is very important that you return on time for your second appointment, as this is a timed study.
If you are having any other imaging procedures on the same day, please inform our scheduling staff. If there is any possibility that you are pregnant you must inform the technologist or the scheduling staff. Breast-feeding should not be done for a short time after a Nuclear Med exam, as the tracer may be passed along in breast milk. It may be expressed before hand, and the exact timing should be discussed with the Nuclear Med Physician or staff.
THREE PHASE BONE SCAN
When you schedule an appointment for this examination you will be given two different appointment times, the first will be for an injection and approximately 30 minutes of imaging and the second which will be approximately 3 hours later and will be for delayed images. The second appointment for the final phase of scanning takes approx. 1 hour. We do recommend that between having the injection and having the procedure that you drink plenty of fluids and urinate frequently. You may leave the facility after your injection, however it is very important that you return on time for your second appointment, as this is a timed study.
If you are having any other imaging procedures on the same day, please inform our scheduling staff. If there is any possibility that you are pregnant you must inform the technologist or the scheduling staff. Breast-feeding should not be done for a short time after a Nuclear Med exam, as the tracer may be passed along in breast milk. It may be expressed before hand, and the exact timing should be discussed with the Nuclear Med Physician or staff.
BONE SCAN-SPECT
When you schedule an appointment for this examination you will be given two different appointment times, the first will be for an injection only and the second which will be approximately 3 hours later and will be for the actual exam. The injection appointment takes approx 10 minutes and the actual exam takes approx an hour and a half. There is no preparation required for this test. We do however recommend that between having the injection and having the procedure that you drink plenty of fluids and urinate frequently. You may leave the facility after your injection, however it is very important that you return on time for your second appointment, as this is a timed study.
If you are having any other imaging procedures on the same day, please inform our scheduling staff. If there is any possibility that you are pregnant you must inform the technologist or the scheduling staff. Breast-feeding should not be done for a short time after a Nuclear Med exam, as the tracer may be passed along in breast milk. It may be expressed before hand, and the exact timing should be discussed with the Nuclear Med Physician or staff.
THYROID UPTAKE AND SCAN
When you call to schedule this exam you will be asked questions regarding any medication you are currently taking or recently discontinued, if you have had x-ray contrast/dye in the prior 6 weeks and what your thyroid history is.
When you schedule an appointment for this examination you will be given two different appointment times on two different days. On day 1 you will arrive at your scheduled time and the technologist will give you 2 pills to take which contain a small amount of radioactive iodine. There are no side affects or allergic reactions to these pills.
You return the following day for imaging of the neck area, which takes between 30 min and 1 hour. There is no preparation required for the first days visit, however, after taking the iodine pills the patient will be asked to refrain from eating fish or shell fish until after the second days imaging is completed.
If you are having any other imaging procedures on the same day, please inform our scheduling staff. If there is any possibility that you are pregnant you must inform the technologist or the scheduling staff. Breast-feeding should not be done for a short time after a Nuclear Med exam, as the tracer may be passed along in breast milk. It may be expressed before hand, and the exact timing should be discussed with the Nuclear Med Physician or staff.
HIDA SCAN (Hepato-biliary scan)
You may eat or drink nothing for seven hours prior to this exam. When you arrive you will be asked several questions by the Nuclear Medicine technologist regarding your history and why we are doing the examination. You will then get a small injection in your arm of a small amount of radiotracer. The imaging part of the examination follows immediately and takes approximately 1 hour. Occasionally some patients may have to return for delayed images up to four hours later. This delayed imaging takes less than 5 minutes and the technologist will advise you if this is required when initial study is complete. If you have had any prior sonograms of your gallbladder and/or abdomen it is important to bring all prior reports and films to LHR on the day of your exam.
If you are having any other imaging procedures on the same day, please inform our scheduling staff. If there is any possibility that you are pregnant you must inform the technologist or the scheduling staff. Breast-feeding should not be done for a short time after a Nuclear Med exam, as the tracer may be passed along in breast milk. It may be expressed before hand, and the exact timing should be discussed with the Nuclear Med Physician or staff.
RENAL SCAN
All patients having this exam should be well hydrated. If it is preceded by another exam for which the patient is fasting, they should have several glasses of water just prior to beginning the renal scan. When you arrive you will be asked several questions by the Nuclear Medicine technologist regarding your history and why we are doing the examination.
Renal imaging is performed to show blood flow and function of the kidneys. The pt is positioned face up on the table and the camera is placed behind them (under the table). They are given a small amount of a radiopharmaceutical that is specifically picked up by the kidneys. Imaging takes approx. 45 minutes. Some renal scans are done with an additional part called a Lasix Washout. If the physician suspects there may be an obstruction, a drug called “Lasix” is injected into a vein part way through the scan. This causes the kidneys to empty at a rapid pace and helps demonstrate whether or not there is an obstructed kidney or ureter.
If you are having any other imaging procedures on the same day, please inform our scheduling staff. If there is any possibility that you are pregnant you must inform the technologist or the scheduling staff. Breast-feeding should not be done for a short time after a Nuclear Med exam, as the tracer may be passed along in breast milk. It may be expressed before hand, and the exact timing should be discussed with the Nuclear Med Physician or staff.
GALLIUM SCAN
When you arrive you will be asked several questions by the Nuclear Medicine technologist regarding your history and why we are doing the examination. This exam is performed over a 72-hour period, beginning with an injection of a small amount of Gallium Citrate, a radiotracer that localizes in many parts of the body. There are no side effects or reactions.
The patient returns for 2 sets of images and this takes approximately 1 hour. The first scan is done at 24 or 48 hours, depending on why your doctor requested the study. By doing early as well as delayed images, we get a more complete picture for your physician. After the 24 or 48 hour scan, we may ask you to take a bowel “prep”. This consists of a laxative and increased fluid intake prior to the second day’s scan. This scan takes approximately 1 hour. Gallium localizes in bowel and may obscure the organs in the abdomen, so by cleansing the lower GI tract, we get a more diagnostic exam. If it is needed, instructions for the prep will be given at the time of exam.
If you are having any other imaging procedures on the same day, please inform our scheduling staff. If there is any possibility that you are pregnant you must inform the technologist or the scheduling staff. Breast-feeding should not be done for a short time after a Nuclear Med exam, as the tracer may be passed along in breast milk. It may be expressed before hand, and the exact timing should be discussed with the Nuclear Med Physician or staff.
LIVER/SPLEEN SCAN
There is no preparation required for this examination. When you arrive you will be asked several questions by the Nuclear Medicine technologist regarding your history and why we are doing the examination. You will be given a small injection of radiotracer and imaging will begin approximately 15 minutes later. The examination takes between 30 to 45 minutes. Occasionally an additional type of imaging may be either requested by your physician or indicated based on what the radiologist sees. This involves an extra 30 to 60 minutes of imaging.
If you are having any other imaging procedures on the same day, please inform our scheduling staff. If there is any possibility that you are pregnant you must inform the technologist or the scheduling staff. Breast-feeding should not be done for a short time after a Nuclear Med exam, as the tracer may be passed along in breast milk. It may be expressed before hand, and the exact timing should be discussed with the Nuclear Med Physician or staff.
PARATHYROID SCAN
When you schedule an appointment for this examination you will be given two different appointment times, the first will be for an injection and initial imaging and the second which will be approximately 3 hours later and will be for the second part of the exam. When you arrive you will be asked several questions by the Nuclear Medicine technologist regarding your history and why we are doing the examination.
Following the injection you will wait approximately 15 minutes. Then you will have a 30-minute scan of your head and neck area. You may then leave the facility and return to normal activity, which may include eating and drinking. It is very important that you return on time for your second appointment, as this is a timed study. This second part of your exam takes under 30 minutes.
If you are having any other imaging procedures on the same day, please inform our scheduling staff. If there is any possibility that you are pregnant you must inform the technologist or the scheduling staff. Breast-feeding should not be done for a short time after a Nuclear Med exam, as the tracer may be passed along in breast milk. It may be expressed before hand, and the exact timing should be discussed with the Nuclear Med Physician or staff.
