Body Area: Arms / Hands

Body Parts: Forearm

Symptoms: Bulging Veins

Description:
This is a test where radioactive material is injected into a vein and picked up by the heart so pictures can be taken that show how healthy the heart muscle is. The test can be a stand-alone test used to show the structure and function of the heart, or it may be part of a nuclear stress test to show how the heart performs both under stress and at rest. The radioactive material is not active for very long, so there is little long-term exposure of the patient or other people to radiation. However, the amount of short-term radiation exposure for the patient is significant enough (equivalent to many chest x-rays) that the test should not be undertaken lightly.