Nuclear Medicine

Nuclear Medicine scanners obtain images after a small amount of radioactive tracer has been absorbed in the body. The tracer is administered either orally or through an injection or intravenous tube. A special gamma camera detects the distribution of the tracer in your body, and specialized images of this metabolic activity enable the radiologist to study the function of the tissues in addition to its anatomy.

Nuclear Cardiac Scanning, also called nuclear stress testing, is a type of imaging that shows the flow of blood through a patient's heart, following an injection of a radiopharmaceutical substance or tracer. During the procedure, specialized images of the heart and the distribution of this tracer are obtained as the body moves through a scanner. When you visit you may have an Exercise Stress Test (nuclear scanning of your heart and exercise on a treadmill) or a Pharmaceutical Stress Test (a pharmaceutical used to replicate the effects of being on a treadmill).

For more information about Riverview's Diagnostic Imaging Center call 732-530-2304 or visit our physician referral page.