Appointments are required for all exams except X-ray, which is offered on a walk-in basis. Requisitions are required for every appointment.
In Calgary, bone scans and myocardial perfusion imaging (sometimes called a nuclear stress test) are the most common types of nuclear medicine imaging that help diagnose tumours, fractures, arthritis, heart problems, and more.
Nuclear medicine imaging can examine the whole body or a specific area of concern using a small amount of radioactive material (called a radiopharmaceutical) injected into an arm vein that travels through your bloodstream into your bones, or to the heart in the case of myocardial perfusion imaging (MPI). A gamma camera detects the radiation emitted from your body, which is put together by a computer that creates images of the areas of concern.
Areas that take up little or no amount of the radiopharmaceutical appear as "cold" spots, and could show a lack of blood supply to the bone. Areas which take up more radiopharmaceutical show up as "hot" spots, indicating increased blood flow or bone turnover, and could point to problems like arthritis, a tumour, a fracture, or an infection. During MPI, areas of the heart with good blood flow will take up the radiopharmaceutical. Areas which have poor blood flow or have been damaged by a heart attack will take up very little or no radiopharmaceutical.
We offer nuclear medicine imaging at five locations which feature the very latest in state-of-the-art technology.
Read the following articles from our Knowledge Centre to learn more about the benefits of nuclear medicine imaging:
Click on your exam below to find out how to prepare, what happens during your exam and where it’s offered.
Mayfair uses GE’s Discovery NM/CT 670, which combines molecular imaging excellence with advanced SPECT and CT technologies. The automated fusion from SPECT and CT images enables faster anatomical coverage, more accurate measurement of tracer uptake, and special features to improve a patient’s ease and comfort.