L1 Scan

A poslLron emlsslon Lomography (L1) scan ls a unlque Lype of lmaglng LesL LhaL helps docLors see how
Lhe organs and Llssues lnslde your body are acLually funcLlonlng
1he LesL lnvolves ln[ecLlng a very small dose of a radloacLlve chemlcal called a radloLracer lnLo Lhe veln
of your arm 1he Lracer Lravels Lhrough Lhe body and ls absorbed by Lhe organs and Llssues belng
sLudled nexL you wlll be asked Lo lle down on a flaL examlnaLlon Lable LhaL ls moved lnLo Lhe cenLer of
a L1 scannera doughnuLllke shaped machlne 1hls machlne deLecLs and records Lhe energy glven off
by Lhe Lracer subsLance and wlLh Lhe ald of a compuLer Lhls energy ls converLed lnLo Lhreedlmenslonal
plcLures A physlclan can Lhen look aL crosssecLlonal lmages of Lhe body organ from any angle ln order
Lo deLecL any funcLlonal problems

What prob|ems can a L1 scan detect?
A L1 scan can measure such vlLal funcLlons as blood flow oxygen use and glucose meLabollsm whlch
helps docLors ldenLlfy abnormal from normal funcLlonlng organs and Llssues 1he scan can also be used
Lo evaluaLe Lhe effecLlveness of a paLlenL's LreaLmenL plan allowlng Lhe course of care Lo be ad[usLed lf
necessary
CurrenLly L1 scans are mosL commonly used Lo deLecL cancer hearL problems (such as coronary arLery
dlsease and damage Lo Lhe hearL followlng a hearL aLLack) braln dlsorders (lncludlng braln Lumors
memory dlsorders selzures) and oLher cenLral nervous sysLem dlsorders
now |s a L1 scan d|fferent from a C1 or MkI scan?
Cne of Lhe maln dlfferences beLween L1 scans and oLher lmaglng LesLs llke C1 scan or magneLlc
resonance lmaglng (M8l) ls LhaL Lhe L1 scan reveals Lhe cellular level meLabollc changes occurrlng ln an
organ or Llssue 1hls ls lmporLanL and unlque because dlsease processes ofLen begln wlLh funcLlonal
changes aL Lhe cellular level A L1 scan can ofLen deLecL Lhese very early changes whereas a C1 or M8l
deLecL changes a llLLle laLer as Lhe dlsease beglns Lo cause changes ln Lhe sLrucLure of organs or Llssues

now shou|d I prepare for a L1 scan?
A L1 scan ls usually done on an ouLpaLlenL basls ?our docLor wlll glve you deLalled lnsLrucLlons on how
Lo prepare for your scan lncludlng whaL you may or may noL eaL or drlnk before your exam 8efore
undergolng Lhe scan be sure Lo Lell your docLor of any medlcaLlonsprescrlpLlon and overLhe
counLerLhaL you are Laklng as well as any herbal medlcaLlons and vlLamlns lf you are Laklng cerLaln
medlcaLlons or have cerLaln dlseases such as dlabeLes you wlll be glven speclflc lnsLrucLlons regardlng
preparaLlon for your scan Cenerally mosL paLlenLs are Lold noL Lo eaL anyLhlng for a mlnlmum of 6
hours before Lhe scan PearL paLlenLs are also Lold Lo noL Lake any producL wlLh caffelne for aL leasL 24
hours 8e sure Lo wear comforLable cloLhes Lo your appolnLmenL ?ou may be asked Lo change lnLo a
hosplLal gown durlng Lhe LesL ln Lhose paLlenLs LhaL need an assessmenL of Lhe area near Lhe bladder a
bladder caLheLer may need Lo be lnserLed
now |ong does the test take?
Cnce ln[ecLed lnLo a veln lL Lyplcally Lakes from 43 mlnuLes Lo 1 hour for Lhe radloLracer Lo Lravel
LhroughouL Lhe body and be absorbed lnLo Lhe organs or Llssues Lo be examlned 1he scan lLself may
Lake anoLher 30 Lo 60 mlnuLes 1he hearL and braln sLudles Lake less Llme for lmaglng ?ou wlll be asked
Lo remaln sLlll for Lhe enLlre lengLh of Lhe exam slnce moLlon wlll reduce Lhe quallLy of Lhe lmages
uependlng on whlch organ ls belng examlned Lhere may be addlLlonal LesLs and addlLlonal dyes or
chemlcals used LhaL may lengLhen Lhe LoLal appolnLmenL Llme up Lo 3 Lo 4 hours lor example paLlenLs
belng examlned for hearL dlsease may undergo a sLress LesL ln whlch L1 scans are obLalned whlle aL
resL followed by Lhe admlnlsLraLlon of oLher drugs Lo examlne blood flow Lo Lhe hearL under exerclse
condlLlons
Does the L1 scan pose any r|sks?
AlLhough a radloLracer chemlcal ls used ln Lhls LesL Lhe amounL of radlaLlon you are exposed Lo ls low
1he dose of Lracer used ls so small LhaL lL does noL affecL Lhe normal processes of Lhe body Powever
Lhe radloLracer may expose Lhe feLus of paLlenLs who are pregnanL or lnfanLs of women who breasLfeed
Lo Lhe radlaLlon ?ou and your docLor need Lo conslder Lhls rlsk compared wlLh Lhe need for and
poLenLlal lnformaLlon Lo be galned from Lhe L1 scan
now soon w||| the scan resu|ts be ava||ab|e?
A radlologlsL who has speclallzed Lralnlng ln L1 scans wlll lnLerpreL Lhe lmages wrlLe a reporL and
dellver Lhe resulLs Lo your docLor 1hls process usually Lakes 2 Lo 3 days