Search results
Results from the WOW.Com Content Network
Scintigraphy (from Latin scintilla, "spark"), also known as a gamma scan, is a diagnostic test in nuclear medicine, where radioisotopes attached to drugs that travel to a specific organ or tissue (radiopharmaceuticals) are taken internally and the emitted gamma radiation is captured by gamma cameras, which are external detectors that form two-dimensional images [1] in a process similar to the ...
A gamma camera (γ-camera), also called a scintillation camera or Anger camera, is a device used to image gamma radiation emitting radioisotopes, a technique known as scintigraphy. The applications of scintigraphy include early drug development and nuclear medical imaging to view and analyse images of the human body or the distribution of ...
SPECT machine performing a total body bone scan. The patient lies on a table that slides through the machine, while a pair of gamma cameras rotate around her. To acquire SPECT images, the gamma camera is rotated around the patient. Projections are acquired at defined points during the rotation, typically every 3–6 degrees.
These gamma rays are detected by two gamma cameras to form a three-dimensional image. PET scanners can incorporate a computed tomography scanner (CT) and are known as PET-CT scanners. PET scan images can be reconstructed using a CT scan performed using one scanner during the same session.
The radioactive gamma rays are emitted through the body as the natural decaying process of these isotopes takes place. The emissions of the gamma rays are captured by detectors that surround the body. This essentially means that the human is now the source of the radioactivity, rather than the medical imaging devices such as X-ray or CT.
A DPD scan is a type of nuclear medicine imaging test which uses radioactive technetium-99m (99m Tc) and 3,3-diphosphono-1,2-propanodicarboxylic acid (DPD) to diagnose cardiac amyloidosis. The radiopharmaceutical is taken up only in patients with ATTR amyloidosis , making it a useful tool to differentiate from AL amyloidosis .
After one hour, the patient gets an injection to the shoulder, which contains the radiopharmaceutical, and then waits for 4 hours. The concentration of the substance increases, and then it is scanned by a gamma-camera, which is located around the patient's head. The whole examination lasts about 30–45 minutes, and it is non-invasive.
Gallium scan showing panda (A) and lambda (B) patterns, considered specific for sarcoidosis in the absence of histological confirmation. In the past, the gallium scan was the gold standard for lymphoma staging, until it was replaced by positron emission tomography (PET) using 18 F-fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG).