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Bone scanning tests are used to measure the
density and strength of the bones. Bone tumors or compression fractures
caused by osteoporosis can also be located with the help of bone
scanning process. This procedure involves injection of small amount of
radioactive substance in to one of your veins. The substance gets
collected in the bones emitting gamma waves which detects the bone
problems by using a special camera. In some cases the bones can be
visualized using X-rays or special nuclear scanning techniques like
Single Photon Emission Computed Tomography (SPECT).
Bone scanning process is useful in determining early bone
abnormalities which are otherwise suspected of leading to conditions
like spinal fracture, cancer and osteoarthritis. Bone scan procedure is
usually performed to obtain the picture of bone metabolism. A bone scan
may be ordered by your doctor to diagnose hidden or subtle bone
fractures which are not detected by a routine X-ray like stress
fracture. Bone scan is also useful in detecting:
1) Bone cancer
2) Arthritis
3) Infection in bones
4) Causes of unexplained bone pain
In one way bone scan is opposite to X-rays. An X-ray passes radiation in
to or through your body in order to create an image on film kept on the
other side of your body whereas, in bone scan, the source of radiation
is inside your body traveling to the surface where the camera detects it.
Bone scan is generally recommended to identify the following
disorders:
1) Arthritis
2) Fractures
3) Bone tumors
4) Bone infections
5) Fibrous dysplasia
6) Unexplained pain
This procedure's sensitivity to variation in bone
metabolism and the ability to scan the entire skeleton helps in
diagnosing a variety of bone disorders. This test is safe to perform as
the radiation emitted in the process is very little thus posing no
greater risks. This bone scan process involves two basic stages, the
injection stage and the scanning stage. This test should be strictly
performed under the supervision of your doctor following all the
essential instructions related to the test to ensure the accuracy of the
test.
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