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Nuclear Medicine

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Danville Campus

For more information or to make an appointment, contact our Danville campus today.

Call 434.799.3883

Martinsville Campus

For more information or to make an appointment, contact our Martinsville campus today.

Call 276.666.7561

Frequently Asked Questions

Review FAQs

Cardiac Rest & Stress Test

The MIBI stress test provides your physician with a detailed evaluation of your cardiovascular fitness. It can help your doctor evaluate circulation to your heart muscle in a controlled exercise environment. This test also helps your doctor evaluate the condition of your coronary arteries.

MIBI Stress Test Procedures

The MIBI stress examination is performed in two parts.

Please do not eat prior to or during the test. If you have diabetes, please check with your doctor. When you arrive, you'll need to provide your medical history (including a list of medications) and sign an informed consent.

Part I:

    • An intravenous line is placed in your arm.
    • Your chest will be prepared for EKG electrode placement for monitoring your heart activity. Your chest may need to be shaved.
    • There will be a physician and trained staff member with you during your test.
    • You'll be introduced to a power-driven treadmill or testing bicycle and asked to exercise at a low level initially. The level of exercise will then be slowly increased.
    • Your heart rate, blood pressure, appearance, and other observations will be monitored closely before you begin, as you exercise, and after the test.
    • If any difficulties are noticed, testing will be discontinued.
    • Near the peak of exercise, thallium, a nuclear tracer, is injected into the intravenous line.
    • Exercise continues 1 minute after the sesta MIBI injection, and you are taken by stretcher to the Nuclear Medicine Department for 30 minutes of scanning.

Part II:

The sesta MIBI injection is repeated again in 3 hours and scanning is repeated an hour later for 30 minutes.
All MIBI stress examinations use Single Photon Emission Computed Tomography and sophisticated computer processing for data analysis.
Results of the test will be given to you by your physician.

Other Nuclear Medicine Services

    • Gallium Scan -- looks for sites of infection or tumors.
    • Indium Labelled White Blood Cell Scan -- evaluates possible infection using the patient's white blood cells, which are radio-labelled.
    • G.I. Bleed -- indicates unidentified sources of gastrointestinal bleeding.
    • Liver/Spleen Scan -- evaluates functional liver disorders, i.e., cirrhosis, hepatitis, metabolic disorders.
    • Labelled Red Cell Scan -- differentiates benign vascular liver lesions from other tumors.
    • Meckle's Scan -- identifies a disorder that affects 1-2% of the population... usually children; the symptoms include abdominal pain and rectal bleeding.
    • Renal Imaging -- evaluates renal function. It may be performed with a diuretic to determine the possibility of obstruction.
    • MUGA Scan -- determines cardiac function and wall motion.
    • Thyroid Scan and Uptake -- detects thyroid nodules. Useful for evaluating various thyroid disorders.

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