This is a special type of radionucleotide scan that provides information as to how active (functional) certain areas in the body or tissues are but it is fundamentally different from other techniques. Positively charged particles (positrons) are emitted from short lived radioisotopes produced in a cyclotron travel for a short distance 1-2mm in body tissue before they interact with negatively charged particles called electrons.

This process of interaction( an annihilation interaction) releases gamma radiation which is received by a detector and reconstructed as a picture by the computer. Suitable isotopes exist for a number of elements including carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen and oxygen. Since these are the basic chemical elements used to build most naturally occurring compounds in the body such as glucose and oxygen, these can then be labelled with an appropriate isotope ( ie have the isotope attached to them).

This then permits investigation in a wide range of clinical settings. Glucose is the most commonly labelled substance becoming fluorodeoxy glucose.

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