Nuclear Bone Scan

Nuclear Imaging to Diagnose and Treat Bone Disease

Nuclear medicine uses low-dose radioactive material and advanced cameras to create highly detailed images of your bones. At Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC), we use nuclear bone tests to diagnose and manage musculoskeletal conditions. Nuclear imaging tests can pinpoint what’s causing bone pain. They can also help your doctor closely study a fracture or tumor.

Highly Specialized Radiology

Regular X-ray or CT exams create images by passing low doses of radiation through your body. Nuclear imaging uses the opposite approach. Our radiologists inject low-dose radioactive material into your body.

Innovative cameras detect radioactive material and produce precise digital images. Specialists in our Division of Nuclear Medicine review the images. The radiation dose from a nuclear bone scan is about 0.53 rem. Your body quickly eliminates the radioactive material, making nuclear imaging a highly safe procedure.

What to Expect

You do not need to make any special preparations before a nuclear bone scan. When you come to BIDMC for your test, plan to be with us for about four hours. 

Here’s what to expect during your visit: 

• Radioactive injection: Your radiologist injects the radioactive substance into a vein in your arm. You will feel a small pinprick. There are no other side effects from the injection. The radioactive material will make your bones visible on the scan. 
• Three-hour wait: The radioactive material needs time to travel through your blood and into your bones. This takes about three hours. During this time, we ask you to drink lots of fluids and to urinate often. This helps clear the radioactive substance from your soft tissue, making your bones more visible during the scan. 
• Bone scan: When it’s time for your scan, you lie on a table. The camera will be above or below you. The camera moves slowly across your body, taking many photos. One or more areas may be studied in detail. Your scan will take between 30 and 60 minutes to complete. 
• Test results: Images from your nuclear scan are transferred to a high-resolution video monitor. A nuclear medicine doctor reviews the images and compares them to regular X-rays of your body to gather the most information possible. The nuclear medicine specialist discusses the results with your referring doctor. Your doctor shares and explains the results with you.