Admin_NHT Staff asked 6 years ago Radionuclide Scanning method is applied to image bones, organs, and different parts of the body by giving the person a small dose of radioactive drug which acts as a tracer. There are different types of tracers and the choice depends on the part of the body to be imaged. The radioactive drug can be given by various means, e.g. ingested orally to scan G.I tract, as eye drops for lacrimal scintigraphy, intravenously.
The preparation for the testing also depends on the type of scan. You can be asked to consume fluids so that the tracer is better spread throughout the body, you can be asked to empty your bladder, you may also be asked to stop taking certain medications. After ingesting the tracer, you will be asked to wait for some time for the tracer to reach its target organ. Then, you will be asked to lie down flat on a table and a gamma camera will be used to detect the radiation coming from your body. The total test time depends on the number of pictures to be taken and the type of organ to be imaged, so it might from up to 20 minutes to a few hours to complete the scanning process.
These scans generally do not cause any side-effects but people who are pregnant or trying to get pregnant or are breastfeeding should warm their doctor beforehand, as this type of scanning might expose your child to radiation. After the scan, the radioactive drug should be expelled from your body by natural means, but you may be asked to take certain precautions like flushing twice after you use the bathroom and thoroughly washing your hands. You may also be advised to consume plenty of fluid to flush the drug out of your system quickly.