ETMC gets nuclear camera

Courtesy Photo TERRY GIBSON, CNMT, works to organize the installation of a new Philips Forte nuclear medicine gamma camera. This new camera will run twice as fast and provide clearer images than the hospital’s previous camera, a hospital spokesperson said.

How would your physician know if your gall bladder wasn’t working properly? Or your thyroid—or any of a number of other internal organs?

He or she might decide to order a nuclear medicine study at ETMC Gilmer, where patients will soon have access to the Philips Forte nuclear medicine gamma camera, touted as a brand new system with the newest software.

The new technology is currently being installed at ETMC Gilmer, and is expected to be up-and-running in mid-April, according to Terry Gibson, CNMT, a certified nuclear medicine technologist at the hospital.

“Nuclear medicine enhances the other modalities in radiology, such as X-ray and MRI. It not only can look at the anatomy of an organ in the body, but it also tests its functionality—whether it’s working properly or not,” he said.

It has many applications, especially related to the diagnosis of heart problems. “Through nuclear medicine studies, we can see the size of your heart, the volume of blood that it is pumping, as well as areas of thickening in the walls,” he said.

And, for patients with suspected gall bladder ailments, nuclear medicine is used to determine if the gall bladder is working properly or if it is functioning at an abnormal level. It is a way to gather medical information that would otherwise be unavailable, require surgery, or necessitate more expensive diagnostic tests.

Patients undergoing nuclear medicine studies are given medicine containing very small amounts of radioactive materials, also known as radiopharmaceuticals, in preparation for the test. During the nuclear medicine study, the gamma camera detects these radiopharmaceuticals and these images are sent to a computer to provide very precise pictures about the area of the body being imaged. The amount of radiation in a typical nuclear imaging procedure is comparable with that received during a diagnostic x-ray. The expected scan times range from 15-20 minutes up to 3-4 hours, depending on the type of scan ordered, Gibson said. “This is a dual head camera, which will run twice as fast as the camera we used to have.”

The new camera is a $385,000 investment in the hospital’s services. Beginning with extensive construction throughout the facility to prepare ETMC Gilmer to open as a full-service hospital in May 2004, approximately $6 million has been invested in the facility.

ETMC Gilmer is part of the East Texas Medical Center Regional Healthcare System’s network of hospitals throughout East Texas.

Other ETMC facilities include hospitals in Athens, Carthage, Clarksville, Crockett, Fairfield, Jacksonville, Mt. Vernon, Pittsburg, Quitman, Trinity and Tyler. ETMC is a not-for-profit organization committed to improving the quality of life in communities throughout East Texas. For more information, please visit on the web at www.etmc.org.