What Is Scintigraphy?
Scintigraphy is a branch of medical imaging. It uses small amounts of radioactive material to diagnose, determine the severity of, and treat various diseases. For example, these include many types of cancer, heart disease, and gastrointestinal, endocrine, and neurological disorders, as well as other abnormalities in the body.
Because scintigraphy procedures can accurately determine the location of molecular activity inside the body, they offer a significant diagnostic advantage. As a result, they can detect disease at an early stage. Moreover, they help assess the patient’s initial response to therapeutic interventions.
How Is Scintigraphy Performed?
Nuclear medicine imaging procedures are non-invasive and, apart from intravenous injections, are mostly painless medical tests. Therefore, they help physicians diagnose and evaluate medical conditions. These imaging scans use radioactive substances known as radiopharmaceuticals or radiotracers.
Depending on the type of nuclear medicine examination, the radiotracer is either injected into the body, swallowed, or inhaled in the form of a gas. Eventually, it accumulates in a specific organ or the targeted area of the body. Then, the radioactive emissions produced by the radiotracer are detected by a special camera or imaging device, which produces images and provides molecular information.
What Are the Common Applications of Scintigraphy?
Physicians use radionuclide imaging to observe the structure and function of organs, tissues, bones, or systems within the body.
In adults, nuclear medicine is used for the following:
Heart
Visualizing blood flow in the heart and evaluating cardiac function (e.g., myocardial perfusion scan)
Detecting coronary artery disease and assessing the degree of blockage
Assessing damage to the heart following a heart attack
Evaluating treatment options such as bypass surgery and angioplasty
Assessing outcomes of revascularization procedures
Detecting heart transplant rejection
Evaluating heart function before and after chemotherapy (MUGA scan)
Lungs
Screening lungs for respiratory and blood flow problems
Evaluating differential lung function for lung volume reduction or transplant surgery
Detecting lung transplant rejection
Bones
Evaluating bones for fractures, infections, and arthritis
Assessing metastatic bone disease
Evaluating painful prosthetic joints
Detecting bone tumors
Identifying biopsy sites
Brain
Investigating abnormalities in the brain in patients with symptoms such as seizures, memory loss, or suspected blood flow irregularities
Early detection of neurological disorders such as Alzheimer’s disease
Assisting surgical planning and identifying seizure foci
Evaluating abnormalities in brain chemicals responsible for movement in suspected Parkinson’s disease or related movement disorders
Assessing suspected recurrence of brain tumors, aiding in surgery or radiation planning, or identifying biopsy sites
Other Systems
Identifying inflammation or abnormal function of the gallbladder
Detecting gastrointestinal bleeding
Evaluating postoperative complications after gallbladder surgery
Examining lymphedema
Assessing unexplained fevers
Localizing the source of infection
Measuring thyroid function to detect hyperthyroidism or hypothyroidism
Assisting in the diagnosis of hyperthyroidism and blood cell disorders
Evaluating hyperparathyroidism
Assessing gastric emptying
Investigating cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) flow and potential CSF leaks
Cancer
In both adults and children, nuclear medicine is also used for:
Staging cancer by detecting its presence and spread throughout the body
Locating sentinel lymph nodes before surgery in patients with breast cancer or skin and soft tissue tumors
Planning treatment
Evaluating response to therapy
Detecting cancer recurrence
Detecting rare tumors of the pancreas and adrenal glands
Renal (Kidneys)
Analyzing blood flow and function in native and transplanted kidneys
Detecting urinary tract obstructions
Evaluating hypertension related to renal arteries
Assessing kidneys for scarring after infection
Detecting and monitoring urinary reflux
In Children
Scintigraphy is used to:
Investigate esophageal anomalies such as reflux or motility disorders
Evaluate tear duct patency
Assess the patency of ventricular shunts in the brain
Examine congenital heart disease in terms of shunt and pulmonary blood flow