Skeleton bone scintigraphy is a functional method for diagnosing bone pathology. The principle of operation of this method is the unequal absorption of a radioactive drug by normal and pathological bone tissues. This drug is administered in a dosage that does not have a toxic effect on the body, but at the same time is the so-called "label" for pathological tissues.
There are many varieties of indicator drugs that are designed to study certain body systems. For skeleton bones, it is best to use bisphosphanates with 99mTc on the walls. This drug has maximum penetration in bone structures.
As a result of the diagnostic scintigraphy of the skeleton, a two-dimensional image is obtained - this is quite enough to detect structural anomalies and pathological processes.
Skeletal bone scintigraphy can be performed in the following situations:
- oncological pathology with possible metastasis,
- directly tumor processes in the bones,
- fractures
- as an observation of the dynamics of treatment.
Skeleton scintigraphy is carried out in special gamma cameras. The structure of this room is such that it is able not only to capture the smallest photons, but also to increase their strength several times. As a result, a massive flash of light is formed, which is captured by a special spectrometric machine. Thus, it is possible to determine the distribution of the labeled preparation over the entire area of the skeleton.
The radiopharmaceutical is administered three hours before the intended study. It is during this time that the substance manages to spread through the circulatory system to absolutely all bones of the skeleton. Then they immediately proceed to the diagnosis, which does not take more than an hour. The result can be evaluated almost immediately after the procedure - it is very convenient for both the patient and the doctor.
Skeleton bone scintigraphy at the moment is one of the most popular and popular methods for diagnosing bone pathology. Advantages of this study:
- a small amount of time and money spent on the procedure;
- high information content (allows you to see signs of a malignant process in the bones a few months before visualizing them on an x-ray);
- painlessness for the patient and absolute safety.
It should be noted that scintigraphy of skeleton bones was done in the USA over the previous year 17 million times, that is, more than 10 million human lives were probably saved. Indeed, in the fight against cancer, the most important thing is early diagnosis.
In Western countries, bone scintigraphy is not something new and surprising, it is rather a common diagnostic method that is performed in almost any clinic. In less developed countries, this study is considered inadmissible luxury and is carried out only in large medical centers. The equipment also leaves much to be desired - most often these are obsolete gamma cameras.
It must be understood that scintigraphy can be used not only for the diagnosis of bone diseases. It has found its wide application in cardiology, for the detection of heart pathology. Myocardial scintigraphy is performed with slightly different drugs, but the principle of the method remains the same.
"Pertechnetat" is a special labeled drug for the diagnosis of thyroid diseases using a gamma camera.
There are also various radioactive drugs tropic to lung tissue and renal glomeruli. This allows you to diagnose the pathology of these systems at the very initial stages.
In general, scintigraphy is a universal method for the diagnosis of many pathologies of internal organs, and, most likely, in the future it will be more common in all countries.