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General Questions

MRI

CT

X-Ray

Mammograms

Ultrasound

Arthrograms

Nuclear Medicine

Hip Joint Injection

Bone Density Scans

How does the procedure work?

You will be positioned on an examination table. A technologist will insert an intravenous (IV) line into a vein in your hand or arm. Depending on the type of nuclear medicine exam you are undergoing, the dose of radiotracer is then injected intravenously, swallowed by mouth or inhaled as a gas. It can take several seconds to several hours for the radiotracer to travel through your body and accumulate in the organ or area being studied. As a result, imaging may be done immediately, or a few hours later.

When it is time for the imaging to begin, the gamma camera will take a series of images. The camera may rotate around you or it may stay in one position and you will be asked to change positions in between images. While the camera is taking pictures, you will need to remain still for brief periods of time. The length of time for nuclear medicine procedures varies greatly, depending on the type of exam. Actual scanning time for nuclear imaging exams can take from 20 minutes to several hours and may be conducted over several days.

When the examination is completed, you may be asked to wait until the technologist checks the images in case additional images are needed. If you had an intravenous line inserted for the procedure, it will be removed.