Crystal
Nuclear medicine, the science of using radioactive substances to diagnose and treat a patient, is a rapidly-developing field that aids doctors pinpoint problems in their patients. One of the many types of nuclear medicine is cardiac tests, which include imaging, taking pictures of the heart to determine a problem, and stress tests, placing the heart under stress to see if the organ is functioning properly. Various pieces of equipment are used to perform tests on the heart, some of which are gamma cameras, PET scans, and most importantly, radionuclides. Radionuclides are tracers that contain small traces of radioactivity and are entered in the patients body. Once the isotope reaches the desired organ, cameras are able to take images at different angles and present doctors with a clearer picture of the situation. As all radioactive substances have half-lives, periods during which half of the previous amount of the substance decays, the radioactivity that the patient is subjected to is minimal. The full amount is excreted within one to three days. Nuclear medicine is becoming increasingly popular, and new technologies are constantly being researched to make the science even better.