nuclear medicine and the advancements that it has made since its first use
Medical imaging is used to create a visual representation of the internal parts of a body, critical for therapeutic interventions and clinical analysis. Nuclear Medicine is a techniques that uses radioisotopes and radiopharmaceuticals for research, diagnosis, and treatment. By use of radioactive materials, doctors can detect and determine the level of severity in diseases like; cancer, neurological disorders, and heart problems. This method presents a painless and a less expansive technique for making the diagnosis in the internal components of a body. Gamma rays are emitted from radioactive chemical tracers, and these rays give the diagnostic information of a patient’s anatomy. Approximately 5 in every ten people in the developed nations have benefitted from this technique. This method functions by recording more body radiations as compared to the emissions of the external sources. There are different nuclear medicine scans in this method and the primary emphasis is not the imaging modality (Chandra & Rahmim, 2017). The two commonly used techniques in nuclear medicine are; Positron emission and single-photon emission computed topographies. This paper describes nuclear medicine as well as giving the advancements that it has made since its first use.
Nuclear Medicine employs different equipment in scanning a patient’s body. A camera incorporated into a computer system is used for the imaging process. Display media is used to present the results obtained during the scanning process whereby laser beams, video systems, PACS image storage, Teleradiology, and Multi-imagers are used for this purpose. Nuclear Medicine also ensures the quality of the results through a system of quality control equipment. These quality control equipment includes; Co57 sheet sources, Flat-field flood source, 3-dimensional SPECT phantom, CT quality, and sealed sources (Waterstram-Rich, & Gilmore, 2016). The laboratory equipment includes; pipettes, centrifuges, microscopes, and fume-hoods. This method also requires a set of equipment called the non-imaging that include; gas ventilation traps, well counter, thyroid pump, Geiger Counters, and Dose calibrator. Finally, patient-care equipment is used to protect patients from harm during the process. They include; glucose meters, defibrillators, treadmills, ECG Monitors, and Sphygmomanometer.
Information obtained in nuclear medicine is sometimes insufficient to make an analysis. Pharmaceutical agents are used to giving more details of the study. Apart from helping in information relaying, pharmaceutical agents are also used to increase the study’s specificity and sensitivity, which is attained by the shortening of the imaging time. Non-radioactive pharmaceuticals are used for this purpose, and they include; radioactive iodine that is used to treat cancer and overactive thyroid (Hine, 2016). Acetazolamide is useful in the increase of cerebral blood flow to help in the study of the brain. This agent indicates Alzheimer’s condition and brain attacks. Adenosine is a vasodilator used to detect respiratory diseases, severe arthritis, and orthopedic problems (Chandra & Rahmim, 2017). This method achieves this by helping in cardiac imaging. Cholecystokinin helps in emptying the gall bladder, a vital role in nuclear medicine because it helps the patient sleep for four hours before the process. Captoprillis initially used in the treatment of cognitive heart failure and hypertension and this field; it helps in the selection of candidates for surgical bypass or angioplasty. Cimetidine enhances visualization of ectopic gastric mucus in the imaging study for ling problems. Dobutamine increases heart muscle contraction, thus causing an increase in cardiac stress for imaging purposes. This agent is helpful for patients who are unable to do exercises for increased cardiac activity. Furosemide helps in ruling out or confirming mechanical obstruction in the process of renal scintigraphy. In the detection of Reno-Vascular hypertension, Enalapilat plays a crucial role (Hine, 2016). Morphine helps in the diagnosis of cholecystitis. Phenobarbital adjusts imaging of patients’ hepatobiliary system. Other agents used in nuclear medicine are; vitamin B-12, pentagastrin, dipyridamole, and enalaprilat.
To prepare for this study, different measures have to be taken. Various tests have different preparation requirements. Some scans like 3-phase bone, brain imaging, bone, cisternogram, and renal scans do not require prior preparation of the patient. For a three-phase bone scan, a patient should be injected for the first scan and returns later for a 60-minute scan. In H-Pylori Breath Study, a patient is prepared by denial of food and liquids six hours before the exercise, pump inhibitors are restricted, antibiotics are limited for one month, and finally, H2 blockers are not to be used for two hours. In the MIBG scan, a patient is administered with Lugol’s solution for six days before the process. The patients are not restricted to foods and drinks in this scan (Chandra & Rahmim, 2017). The patient’s previous imaging are analyzed before this scan. For the stress test, a patient is restricted from using food and drinks for six hours before the process. For viability with a stress test, the radiotherapist restricts a patient from using caffeine and beta-blockers for 24 hours before the exercise. Preparations in nuclear medicine involve guiding a patient by limiting some actions, foods, and drinks.
Sensitivity in nuclear medicine measures the extent to which a test generates correct positive results for a person who has the condition to be tested. A highly sensitive test flags a large percentage of all the infected, with minimal negative results. For instance, a 90% sensitivity test yields 90% sensitive results (Hine, 2016). On the other hand, specificity is a measure of a test’s capacity to generate negative results that do not have the condition being tested. For instance, a high specificity test in nuclear medicine with 90% specificity will produce 90% negative results for people who do not have the condition being tested (Waterstram-Rich, & Gilmore, 2016). In Nuclear Medicine, efficiency in testing is crucial. In a highly infectious disease, syndromes, common specificities, and sensitivities are adopted. For Diabetic Foot Osteomyelitis, sensitivity ranges from 80% to 90%. In comparison, specificity is 50%, a condition attributed to the methods inability to distinguish between the state and fractures, trauma, recent surgeries, and Charcot arthropathy (Hine, 2016). To increase specificity in this method, a bone scan accompanies the radioisotope scan resulting in more than 80% specificity (Hine, 2016). Vertebral Osteomyelitis shows 92% for both specificity and sensitivity. In Prosthetic joint infections, nuclear medicine reports 86-98% specificity and sensitivity (Hine, 2016).
Nuclear Medicine has numerous advantages when compared to other imaging methods. First, the method guarantees advanced treatment options due to its digital and technical nature. For instance, this method has played a crucial role in cancer treatment, a disease that other methods fail even to detect. This method, unlike the others, is highly reliable for the early detection of diseases. It is hugely useful in the discovery of severe conditions at their early stages. Finally, this method provides high accuracy when compared to other methods, a factor obtained without complicated procedures and surgery.
Nuclear Medicine was first used in 1934, and since then, numerous advancements have been made in the field. In the 1950s, nuclear medicine had developed from a small development to a significant imaging method. The following years saw considerable advancement in this method with more advanced techniques getting developed. Today, alpha-particle therapy is slowly replacing the older gamma ray therapy. With alpha particle testing, the diagnostic capabilities of different diseases have increased (Waterstram-Rich, & Gilmore, 2016). Contrary to the time of its introduction, today, many doctors can perform the process successfully, with research centers and learning institutions helping in the understanding of the same. Alpha particles used today have high energies, and sufficient harnessing of the energy is crucial in the treatment of cancerous cells in a human body.
Summary
There are two types of procedures in Nuclear Medicine; diagnostic and therapeutic procedures. During the diagnostic process, the doctor gave the patient a radiopharmaceutical through inhaling. Once the pharmaceutical was administered, the patient lay down on the working table (Klioze, 2015). A camera was then placed over the patient and was used to capture pictures. A computer started collecting data from the patient and showed a concentration of the radioactivity in the patient’s body. The doctor then let the process continue for about two hours for the radioactive materials to leave the body.
From this experience, I learned that Nuclear Medicine is a delicate process that requires much care. Both the doctor’s and the patient’s safety are paramount, and doctors have to ensure the safety of the two. To become an outstanding radiotherapist, it is essential to master the different concepts in Nuclear Medicine through extensive research works and practice (LLUHealth, 2017). As a future radiotherapist, I must be able to conduct these procedures efficiently; by ensuring the safety of the patients and following the right guidelines and procedures.
In conclusion, Nuclear Medicine is an imaging modality that employs radioisotope rays to detect and treat diseases like cancer and bone fractures. This method provides a less invasive and painless technique that is less expensive as compared to other methods. With high accuracy, this method can detect conditions at their early stages resulting in the initial treatment of the diseases. Nuclear Medicine can be combined with radio-immunotherapy for the treatment of cellular activities in the body. Even with its numerous advantages, this technique can be disastrous to one’s health since its continuous use may result in damage to organs due to exposure to excess radiation.