The procedure is painless. Your health care provider might order a three-phase bone scan, which includes a series of images taken at different times. A number of images are taken as the tracer is injected, then shortly after the injection, and again 3 to 5 hours after the injection.
The technologist may ask you to change positions during the scan. This helps to get pictures from different angles. A whole-body bone scan takes about 1 hour to finish. The scan is not painful.
What Happens During a Bone Lesion Biopsy? The location and type of biopsy will determine the type of anesthesia you need. You may have local, site-specific anesthesia, or you may need general anesthesia. Under general anesthesia, you'll be in a painless sleep during the entire biopsy.
Bone scans do not generally cause any after effects. Through the natural process of radioactive decay, the small amount of radioactive chemical in your body will lose its radioactivity over time. It also passes out of your body through your urine over about 24 hours.
A bone scan looks for changes in your bones. Before the test you have a radioactive tracer injection into your bloodstream. You have this through a tube (cannula) into a vein in your hand. It takes 2 to 3 hours for the tracer to go around the body.
The procedure is painless. Your health care provider might order a three-phase bone scan, which includes a series of images taken at different times. A number of images are taken as the tracer is injected, then shortly after the injection, and again 3 to 5 hours after the injection.
Generally, no prior preparation, such as fasting or sedation, is required prior to a bone scan. Notify the radiologist or technologist if you are allergic to or sensitive to medications, contrast dyes, or iodine. If you are pregnant or suspect you may be pregnant, you should notify your health care provider.
A radioactive material (radiopharmaceutical) is injected into a vein, attaches to the bones and is detected by a special camera (gamma camera) that takes images or pictures that show how the bones are working.
Using a bone scan when cancer is suspected can be particularly helpful because the scan can find both primary cancer—or, cancer that started in your bones—and bone metastases, which is cancer that has spread to the bones from another part of your body.
A doctor may order a bone scan to: identify bone cancer. determine whether cancer from another part of the body has spread to the bones. locate hidden bone fractures that do not appear on X-rays.
No special preparations are needed. You may be able to remain fully clothed, depending on the area of your body being scanned. But you'll need to remove any clothes that have metal fasteners, such as zips, hooks or buckles. In some cases, you may need to wear a gown.
There won't be any restrictions on your activities, such as driving, after the scan. You'll need to drink extra fluids for a few days to flush the remaining tracer out of your system.
Can a bone scan machine trigger claustrophobia? A bone scan machine does not require a person to enter an enclosed space and it is not noisy. These aspects make it less likely to trigger claustrophobia than some other imaging tests, such as an MRI or CT scan.
A whole body bone scan takes around 3-4 hours, which includes two separate visits. In the first visit you will be given an injection of a radioactive isotope into a vein in your arm. There are no side effects to this injection. The isotope takes 2-3 hours to circulate in the blood and get absorbed in the bone.
Bone scan can provide early detection of primary cancer and cancer that has spread to the bones from other parts of the body. Bone scan can detect osteomyelitis, an infection of the bone or bone marrow. Bone scan helps monitor the effects of treatment on bone abnormalities.
While a bone density test alone can't determine whether you have arthritis, your doctor may order one if you have inflammatory types of joint disease, as these can be risk factors for bone loss.
Areas of fast bone growth or repair absorb more tracer and show up as bright or "hot" spots in the pictures. Hot spots may point to problems such as arthritis, a tumor, a fracture, or an infection.
A CT scan will highlight any problems with bone and tissue, but they won't help much in determining nerve damage. X-rays, also, are not very effective in picking up neural subtleties, but they will show if there is a break, fracture, or if something is out of place in the musculoskeletal system.
Because MRIs can reveal abnormal appearance or physical abscess in bones, they are more effective at detecting bone cancer than traditional bone scans. They can also identify cancer earlier than bone scans can, allowing MRIs to detect the disease before cancer reaches the bones.
DXA is most often performed on the lower spine and hips. In children and some adults, the whole body is sometimes scanned. Peripheral devices that use x-ray or ultrasound are sometimes used to screen for low bone mass, mostly at the forearm.
THE DAY OF YOUR BONE SCAN:
- You may eat or drink fluids as you normally do. - Drink two 8-ounce glasses of water the day of your scan prior to your arrival.
A bone density test is simple and painless. This test uses small amounts of radiation to determine the density or thickness of bones in the hip, spine and wrist. Dress comfortably; it is not necessary to undress for this test. We do ask that you do not wear an underwire bra, metal buttons, zippers or hooks.
Bone density tests are recommended for all women age 65 and older, and for younger women at higher-than-normal risk for a fracture. Men may want to discuss osteoporosis screening with their doctor if they're over age 70 or at high risk for thinning bones.