Ultrasonography. A wand-like device (transducer) is held over your neck. Sound waves bounce through your neck and back, forming images on a computer screen. The images reveal the size of your thyroid gland and whether the gland contains nodules that your doctor may not have been able to feel.

A thyroid scan. During a thyroid scan, you’ll have a radioactive isotope injected into the vein on the inside of your elbow. You then lie on a table with your head stretched backward while a special camera produces an image of your thyroid on a computer screen. The time needed for the procedure may vary, depending on how long it takes the isotope to reach your thyroid gland. Thyroid scans provide information about the nature and size of your thyroid, but they’re more invasive, time-consuming and expensive than are ultrasound tests.

 Bone scans is use to detect diseases of the bone at the earliest possible time. It is often more sensitive than X-rays in diagnosing infections, tumors, and fractures.

 Calibration is the act of checking or adjusting (by comparison with a standard) the accuracy of a measuring instrument.

 Dose calibrator (radioisotope calibrator) is a device used in radiological research that measures the total energy of a radionuclide in units of Curies (Ci) or millicuries (mCi). It consists of a hollow, lead shielded cylinder, in which samples of radionuclides are lowered for measurement. It can be programmed for specific isotopes, or adjusted by dial for isotopes not in the program. It is commonly used to obtain quick measures of the total radioactivity of isotopes prior to administration to patients and animals, or further processing in chemical synthesis.

 Dosimeter is a measuring instrument for measuring doses of ionizing radiation (X-rays or radioactivity)

 Gamma Camera or Camera is an apparatus used for visualization and acquisition of images and produces no radiation. The system is connected to a computer for archiving and image manipulation.

 Ionization chamber is a chamber for detecting ionization of the enclosed gas, used for determining the intensity of ionizing radiation.

 Myocardial Perfusion Scintigraphy is a scan that uses radioactive substances (radionuclides), in the form of thallium and technicium, which can be used to produce pictures of a patient’s heart.

 Nuclear medicine is a branch of medicine pertaining to diagnostic, therapeutic and investigative use of radioactive chemical elements.

 Probe is a small device for measuring and testing.

 Radioactive: Relating to or making use of radioactive substances or the radiation they emit.

 Radioimmunoassay is a procedure that measures minute amounts of a substance, such as a hormone or drug, by quantitating the binding, or the inhibition of binding, of a radiolabeled substance to an antibody.

 Radioisotope: A particular form of chemical element that is radioactive.

 Radionuclide: Radioactive nuclide.

 RadioPharmaceutical is a radioactive substance usually Technetium(Tc99m), which is administered in its simplest form or in other combined or complex states. Some other radioactive substances which may be used are: Thallium, Gallium, Iodine131, Iodine123.

1. Stationary Gamma Camera
- Large cameras that are positioned as close to the body as possible.
- Patient may sit, stand or lie down, depending on the scan

2. SPECT (single photon emission computed tomography)/Rotating Gamma Cameras
- moves while the scan takes place

3. PET (positron emission tomography) Scanner
- Patient lie on a table that slides into a tube like opening

4. Probes
- Wand like metal tubes that take readings as they are passed over the body
- does not enter the body and rarely touches the skin

Can provide:
• Accurate images that help health-care professionals study the body’s internal organs and tissues.
• Valuable information and measurements of organ and tissue function.
• Therapy – a way of fighting the diseases

The basic procedure:
1. A radioactive material (AN “ISOTOPE”)- is administered in one of the several ways:
• injection or IV
• capsules
• special tubing
• inhalation

2. The isotope travels to “target” organs and tissues.
- Different isotopes are matched with different compounds that travel to specific organs and tissues.

3. The isotope gives off “gamma rays”
- A form of radiation that can only be seen with special equipment.

4. Images and readings are taken
- Of the patient’s target organs and tissues with special cameras or other equipment. The equipment does not give off any radiation.

5. The images and readings are studied
- By a nuclear physician (a physician who specializes in nuclear medicine) and the patient’s personal physician.

Application of nuclear medicine
1. Analyzing kidney function
2. Blocking of gall bladder
3. Blood flow problem
4. Seen of lungs for respiration
5. Image blood flow and heart function
6. Evaluate the bone patient’s infection/tumor
7. Determine the presence/spread of cancer
8. Identify bleeding in the bowel
9. Locate the existence of infection
10. To determine thyroid function