What is Brain SPECT Imaging?
Brain SPECT (Single Photon Emission Computed Tomography) imaging is a nuclear medicine study. It utilizes a radiopharmaceutical to create images of actual brain function by identifying blood flow patterns throughout the brain. It has been used in the study of neurological and psychiatric disorders for the past few decades. A brain SPECT scan can assist your doctor in making a more accurate diagnosis. In addition, most of our patients find that being able to "see" the areas of the brain that are contributing to symptoms, gives them better understanding about their symptoms and increases their motivation to comply with the treatment recommendations of their doctor.
Who should get a Brain SPECT Scan?
A Brain SPECT scan is an imaging tool that supplies objective diagnostic information to your treating physician, and this can help provide you with better healthcare. Patients are referred to CereScan for brain SPECT scans for a variety of reasons, including the following: Some patients have many different symptoms and/or a few “possible” diagnoses and brain SPECT scans help doctors pinpoint the correct diagnoses. Other patients have tried multiple medications or treatments without relief of their symptoms. The results of brain SPECT scans can help physicians with more targeted treatment and medication recommendations for those patients. We often see patients who are referred for the assessment of possible traumatic brain injury or toxic brain injury that may otherwise have gone undetected by other imaging modalities such as CT (“CAT”) or MRI scans. We also have patients (commonly children) who are referred for a brain SPECT scan because parents and physicians seek supportive data of the child’s diagnosis prior to beginning any medication regimen.
How is brain SPECT imaging different than CT or MRI?
In order to fully evaluate a patient's symptoms, information on the brain's structure (anatomy) as well as its function (blood flow) may be necessary. In many cases, the structure of the brain can be normal, while the function can be abnormal. CT and MRI scans provide detailed information on the anatomical structure of the brain. However, in many cases, a patient’s symptoms may persist even though MRI or CT scans are found to be “normal.” Brain SPECT imaging reveals the function of the brain, meaning how well areas of the brain are working or if there are any areas of impairment. Consider this analogy: A picture of your car’s engine (MRI/CT) shows you all of the parts but can not give you information about how well the engine is running (functioning). A brain SPECT scan gives your physician important information about how your brain is functioning. Identifying any areas of the brain that have functional abnormalities can be vitally important to your correct diagnosis and treatment.
For what conditions and diagnoses is brain SPECT imaging helpful?
High Definition Brain SPECT Imaging is recognized as an important tool in the evaluation of traumatic brain injury, toxic brain injury (such as carbon monoxide poisoning and substance abuse), Alzheimer’s disease and other dementias, cerebrovascular disease and stroke as well as seizure localization (although seizure localization is only done in hospital settings). Brain SPECT imaging at CereScan can also be very helpful in the evaluation of neurodevelopmental disorders such as ADHD/ADD, learning disabilities and autism spectrum disorders as well as the psychiatric conditions of depression, bipolar spectrum disorders, anxiety, and obsessive compulsive disorder.
Please contact our Patient Care Department at 877.796.8691 for any additional questions you may have about CereScan’s High Definition Brain SPECT Imaging.
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