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After reviewing your history and any prior exam, you'll receive a radiopharmaceutical injection. This is a radioactive tracer that must pass multiple quality control measures before it is used for any patient injection.
For most studies, you'll have to wait for the radiopharmaceutical to distribute itself - typically from 30 minutes to an hour. You may be able to read, speak or listen to music until your scan begins - and perhaps during the scan itself. However, if your brain is being scanned, you will be asked to wait in a quiet, dimly lit room, without stimulating your brain by reading or talking.
If you're having a heart study, on the other hand, you may not have to wait at all; the radiopharmaceuticals used for cardiac exams are often administered just before scanning begins.
When you're ready for scanning, you'll lie on a comfortable table that moves slowly through the ring-like PET scanner as it acquires the information it needs to generate diagnostic images. You will be asked to lie very still, because movement can interfere with the results.
You shouldn't feel a thing during the scan, which can last anywhere from 15 to 60 minutes. Then, unless the physician sees a need for acquiring additional information, you will be free to leave.
Your exam will vary depending on what your physician is looking for, and what is discovered along the way. Expect to spend two to three hours getting your PET exam.
You may leave as soon as the scan is complete. Unless you've received special instructions, you'll be able to eat and drink immediately - drinking lots of fluids will help remove any of the radiopharmaceutical that may still be in your system.
In the meantime, your results will be prepared for review and the findings forwarded to your physician, who will tell you what has been learned.
A PET, PET/CT study is similar to many other diagnostic procedures, from CT and MRI to Nuclear Medicine. Although the radiation you receive is different, it's roughly equivalent to what you'd receive from other diagnostic imaging exams such as CT (a couple of chest X-rays).
Radiopharmaceuticals used in PET don't remain in your system long, so there's no reason to avoid interacting with other people once you've left. Patients may want to avoid direct contact with an infant or pregnant woman for a few hours after the injection.
Please consult your physician with any additional questions or concerns.
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Your PET exam results may have a major impact on your physician's diagnosis of a potential health problem - and, should a disease be detected, how your return to health is managed.
