Principles of Nuclear Medicine

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THE ATOM
The nucleus has protons and
neutrons. Protons are positively charged particles. Neurons are particles without charge. Electrons orbit the nucleus in precisely defined shells and subshells.

Atomic Structure
Atom is smallest part of element that retains chemical properties of that element Atoms are neutral (no charge), but are divisible into smaller elementary or fundamental particles

Not to scale

Nucleus

Atom anatomy

Electron

Proton

Neutron

Nucleons

The Atom
The symbol X is given to any atom. A is the atomic mass number which is
the total number of protons and neutrons. Z is the atomic number which is the number of protons. Atomic number defines the atom.

Atomic Shorthand
Element Atomic Mass A

X Z

Atomic Number

131

I 53

53 Protons + 78 Neutrons = 131 Nucleons

ISOTOPES
If proton number Z changes, the atom
will change (different element). If neutron number change, the element will be the same, but we will have isotopes. By definition; all isotopes of a given element have the same number of protons and differ only in the number of neutrons.

Example: 53I123, 53I125, 53I131.

Nuclear Families and Nomenclature

12 6

13 6

14 6

Same number of Protons = Isotopes

Radioactive Isotopes
Some isotopes are stable (nonradioactive). Some isotopes are unstable (radioactive).

UNSTABILITY AND DECAY

Unstable isotope seeks greater stability by
some kind of radiation (decay).

Isotopes

Half-Life
The time required for half of the
radioactive isotope to undergo decay is called the half-life. After 4 half-life's, the residual activity would be 6.25% of original activity, which means there is no significant activity left.

Types of Radiation
Particulate:
Emission of beta particles (electrons) The isotope is converted into different element.

Photonic (electromagnetic) : gamma ray

and x-ray
Emission of photons (gamma ray or x-ray) The isotope does not change.

Types of radiation

Decay of Radioactive Isotopes (electron emission)

Single Step Radioactive Decay

.

131

131

I 53
53
(unstable)

Xe 54
(stable)

Decay of Radioactive Isotopes (photon emission)

Photons
Photon is electromagnetic wave. It is part of electromagnetic spectrum. Photons are used in imaging in
radiology (conventional radiography and CT scanning) and in nuclear medicine.

Electromagnetic Spectrum
Frequency (Hz) 105 106 107 108 109 1010 1011 1012 1013 1014 1015 1016 10171018 1019 1020 Wavelength (m) 103 102 101 10-1 10-2 10-3 10-4 10-2 10-3 10-4 10-5 10-6 10-7 10-8 10-9 10-10

Radio/TV

Infrared

UV

X-rays Gamma

Visible 7,000A 4,000A

MRI

Visual Imaging

X-ray Imaging

Electromagnetic radiation
IONIZING RADIATON MICROVAVES VISIBLE X-RAYS COSMIC

TV, RADIO

INFRARED ULTRAVIOLET GAMMA Decreasing wave length

Increasing frequency Increasing photon energy

X-Ray and Gamma Ray

X-ray is emitted from outside the nucleus
(electron shells). Gamma ray is a photon emitted form some isotopes in the process of their decay.

X-rays and gamma rays

Ionizing Radiation
Radiation causes ionization of atoms and
molecules. Ionization is the underlying mechanism for most radiation detectors and also is responsible for most radiobiological effects.

Biological Effect of Radiation

Why should we protect ourselves from
radiation?

Radiation Effects at the Molecular Level - Direct Action

Direct molecular
absorption of energy DNA most susceptible

DNA lesions and chromosome aberrations

DNA SNGLE STRAND BREAK

DNA DOUBLE STRAND BREAK

Indirect Action-Radiolysis of Water

Ionization

Dissociation

Free Radical Biological Damage

Cause damage to
(DNA/RNA) which become nonfunctional

Somatic Effects
Acute or early (deterministic)
within days dose dependent Seen in accidents and nuclear wars Affects acutely bone marrow, GI tract and skin and less neurological system. Latent or delayed (stochastic). not seen for years cancer, cataract, shortened life span

Principals of Radiation Protection

Time Distance Shielding

TIME
The total radiation exposure to an
individual is directly proportional to the time he is exposed to the source. Therefore, it is wise to spend no more time than necessary near the source of radiation.

DISTANCE
The intensity of radiation from a source
varies inversely with the square of the distance.

Therefore, radiation workers should

maximize the distance between themselves and the radiation source.

Shielding
Lead is most commonly used to shield photons
in diagnostic imaging.

Vial Shields

560 mGy/h

1 mGy/h

2 mm lead

Nuclear Medicine Imaging

Technetium 99m (Tc 99m)

It is the main isotope used in nuclear
medicine imaging. It is used in more than 70-80% of cases. It emits gamma ray only. Its half life is 6 hours. It can easily label different kind of pharmaceuticals. It is always given intravenously.

Radiopharmaceuticals
Pharmaceuticals are chemical compounds
that have pharmacokinetics but do not have pharmacological effects. They are usually labeled with Tc99m. For each organ there is certain radiopharmaceuticals In general, nuclear medicine images the function (physiology), not the anatomy as in conventional radiology.

Pharmaceutical

Different Phrmaceuticals

Radio-labeling of Glucose with radioactive Flourine-18

The Gamma Camera

It is a device that uses gamma rays to
make an image of radiopharmaceutical distribution and uptake in patients. Its crystal has a chemical propriety that if it is hit by a photon it will scintillate.

Nuclear Imaging
Not enough to detect just radioactive levels or concentrations Need device to map the radioactive distribution
External Radiation Detector

Gamma camera-cont..
Scintillation means light production. The light is converted into electrical
current which then is stored in the computer as a dot.

Scintillation of Gamma Camera

Light

Crystal

Gamma Ray

Gamma Camera Crystal (B)

NaI(Tl) 1/4 - 1/2** thick
3/8 most popular

10- 21 in diameter
rectangular popular

Sensitive to moisture and temperature

Gamma Camera
Static Image Dyamic Acquisition Images

Mobile Camera

Stationary Dual Head Camera

Stationary Single Head Camera

Gamma Camera