Imaging the Heart (PET and Echo)

Question 1

What is a PET scan? What does it involve?

Answer 1

• type of nuclear medicine

- involves injecting a radioactive tracer molecule that collects in the area of the body to be tested

Question 2

True or False: is a PET scan a type of functional or physiological imaging?

Answer 2

true

Question 3

What is a PET scan used to diagnose?

Answer 3

differences in biological activity in the body

Question 4

What does a PET scan measure?

Answer 4

body functins such as blood flow, oxygen use, and metabolic rates

Question 5

Can images from a PET scan be in colour or in blakc in white?

Answer 5

yes

Question 6

PET scan in colour, what colour are the hot spots and what do hot spots indicate?

Answer 6

• red and orange

- indicate high chemical activity (large amounts of radioacive tracer have accumulated here)

Question 7

In black and white, what do hot spots look like?

Answer 7

darker

Question 8

Explain the 3 steps of a PET scan?

Answer 8

Step 1: inject a radioactive isotope
Step 2: a computer takes this data and converts it into an image
Step 3: The image is projected on the screen and read by physicians

Question 9

The radioactive tracer that is injected into the body during a PET scan continually decayse what?

Answer 9

producing gamma radiation (an electromagnetic wave) that can be detected by a PET scanner

Question 10

What are gamma rays?

Answer 10

a type of ionizing radiation

Question 11

How long do you have to fast before a PET scan and how long do you have to refrain from tobacco, caffeine, adn alcohol?

Answer 11

4 hours and you must refrain from alcohol, tobacco, and caffeine for 24 hours before the test

Question 12

Do you need to remove street clothes and jewlery for a PET scan?

Answer 12

yes

Question 13

Can a PET scan be started with a full bladder?

Answer 13

no, it has to be empty

Question 14

How long do you have to wait after they inject the radioactive tracer?

Answer 14

30-60 minutes

Question 15

Do you need to lie still for a PET scan?

Answer 15

yes

Question 16

What is a PET/CT fusion?

Answer 16

you overlay the results of both tests on top of each other so that you can directly see what area in the chest or abdomen is lighting up on PET

Question 17

What is Single Positron Emission Computed Tomography (SPECT)?

Answer 17

isotopes with logner half lives are used, the way gamma radiation is produced is different, the resolution produced is lower, but the detector used is less expensive

Question 18

What is a echocardiography?

Answer 18

a type of ultrasound

Question 19

What happens during an echocardiography?

Answer 19

ultrasounds utilize ultrasonic sound waves that travel at a high grequency to produce and electronic image.

Question 20

When sound waves hit something at an angle, a certain amount of the sound is transmitted through it and the rest bounces off. What is this reflected waves called?

Answer 20

echo

Question 21

What is a M-Mode Echo?

Answer 21

simple line tracing image; used for size of chambers, thichness of walls or size of heart

Question 22

What is Doppler Echo?

Answer 22

measures and assessed the flow of blood through the hearts valves and chambers (can be done in colour to designate the direction of flow)

Question 23

What is 2D echo?

Answer 23

produces “real-time: motion of teh heart’s structures

Question 24

What is 3D echo?

Answer 24

produces “real-time” motion of the heart in greater depth than 2D

Question 25

What are the 3 steps of an Echo?

Answer 25

Step 1: transducer emits sound waves by converting electrical energy from the power course to sound waves
Step 2: sound waves travel into the body, creating echoes when tehy reach the boundaries between substances
Step 3: echoes are received by teh transducer where they are converted back into electrical energy which can be interpreted by a computer to create and image

Question 26

Echo:

The higher the____, the greater the ____ but the less____of the wave.

Answer 26

• frequencies
• resolution
• penetration

Question 27

What does white indicate of an echo?

Answer 27

dense substance like bone (reflects most of the sound waves; absorbs almost no waves)

Question 28

What does greyscale indicate on an echo?

Answer 28

a medium dense substance like fat or muscle (reflects some of hte sound waves; but also absorbs some waves)

Question 29

What does black indicate on an echo?

Answer 29

indicates fluid reflectors like blood (reflects none of the sound waves; absorbs most of the waves)

Question 30

Do you need to remove street clothes from the waist up or waist down for an echo?

Answer 30

waist up

Question 31

What may be attatched to the chest during an echo?

Answer 31

ECG electrodes

Question 32

Do you need to lie down for an echo?

Answer 32

yes

Question 33

Why does the technician apply clear gel to the ches of the patient during an echo?

Answer 33

becasue the sound waves need a material to travel fromt he transducer to the patient

Question 34

How long will an echocardiograph take?

Answer 34

30-45 minutes

Question 35

Waht are three risk of a PET scan?

Answer 35

1) might be uncomfortable
2) unsafe for pregnant or nursing women (radioactive tracer)
3) radiation even though levels are low

Question 36

What are three benefits of a PET scan?

Answer 36

1) uses bright colours to detect chemical activity
2) in some cases it might prevent surgery
3) early detection; faster than other procedures

Question 37

What are three risks of an Echo?

Answer 37

1) bad reaction to mediaction that may be used
2) stress test can bother heart
3) slight discomfort

Question 38

What are three benefits of an Echo?

Answer 38

1) doesn’t use radiation, only sound waves
2) might prevent surgery
3) non-invasive
4) safe for all people
5) painless