Does nuclear medicine use radiation?

About Radiation Used in Nuclear Medicine Nuclear medicine procedures help detect and treat diseases by using a small amount of radioactive material, called a radiopharmaceutical. Some radiopharmaceuticals are used with imaging equipment to detect diseases.

What kind of radiation does nuclear medicine use?

In nuclear medicine studies, the radiopharmaceutical given to the patient makes them, and the organ system or body part being studied, radioactive for a short time. This ionising radiation (usually a gamma ray) is emitted or released from the body, and can be detected and measured using a nuclear medicine gamma camera.

How do we use radiation in nuclear medicine?

Nuclear medicine procedures are used in diagnosing and treating certain illnesses. These procedures use radioactive materials called radiopharmaceuticals. Examples of diseases treated with nuclear medicine procedures are hyperthyroidism, thyroid cancer, lymphomas, and bone pain from some types of cancer.

How much radiation is in a nuclear stress test?

Nuclear stress tests involve significant radiation exposure equivalent to 400 chest x-rays.

How long are you radioactive after a nuclear scan?

The nuclear imaging agent is out of your system within 60 hours, but it is always decaying so it becomes minimal in a relatively short period of time.

Is MRI nuclear medicine?

MRI does not involve X-rays or the use of ionizing radiation, which distinguishes it from CT and PET scans. MRI is a medical application of nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) which can also be used for imaging in other NMR applications, such as NMR spectroscopy.

Do nuclear medicine techs do MRIS?

Nuclear medicine combines imaging, patient care, chemistry, physics, mathematics, computer technology, and medicine. Nuclear medicine technologists may also operate computed tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scanners that are used in conjunction with nuclear medicine procedures.

How long does it take to be a nuclear medicine physician?

Physicians and surgeons have demanding education and training requirements. Almost all physicians complete at least 4 years of undergraduate school, 4 years of medical school, and, depending on their specialty, 3 to 7 years in internship and residency programs.