What is TC 99 used for?
Technetium-99m is used to image the skeleton and heart muscle in particular, but also for brain, thyroid, lungs, liver, spleen, kidney, gall bladder, bone marrow, salivary and lachrymal glands, heart blood pool, infection and numerous specialized medical studies.
What is a TC 99 scan?
Technetium (Tc-99m) is an isotope commonly used in a number of medical diagnostic imaging scans. Tc99m is used as a radioactive tracer for nuclear medicine; which is a form of medical imaging that assesses how particular parts of our body are working or functioning.
What is TC 99 half-life?
Technetium (chemical symbol Tc) is a silver-gray, radioactive metal. Technetium-99 can be found as a component of nuclear waste. Technetium-99m is a short-lived form of Tc-99 that is used as a medical diagnostic tool. It has a short half-life (6 hours) and does not remain in the body or the environment for long.
Is TC 99 safe?
Technetium-99m has a photopeak of gamma-ray emission of 140.5 keV, making it a very minimal risk of toxicity. [3] The short six-hour half-life and rapid excretion from the body limit toxic effects and give enough time to perform its diagnostic imaging, all while limiting radiation exposure to the patient.
How is TC 99 formed?
Technetium -99m is produced by bombarding molybdenum 98Mo with neutrons. Since 99Mo is a fission product of 235U fission, it can be separated from the other fission products and used to generate 99mTc. For medical purposes, the 99mTc is used in the form of pertechnate, TcO4-.
How is TC 99 scan done?
Tc sestamibi is used for myocardial perfusion imaging, which shows how well the blood flows through the heart. Imaging to measure renal function is done by attaching 99mTc to mercaptoacetyl triglycine (MAG3); this procedure is known as a MAG3 scan.
Why is technetium-99 a good tracer?
Tc-99 m is ideal as a medical tracer because the gamma radiation it emits allows the medical practitioner to image internal body organs causing hardly any radiation damage to the patient. Approximately 85% of diagnostic imaging procedures in nuclear medicine use this isotope.
What does Tc-99m stand for in medical terms?
Tc-99m (DTPA) – brain or kidney scan; administered dose is 20 mCi (injected); bladder (0.5 rad/mCi); whole body (20 mrad/mCi) Skin Contamination (Tc-99m)
Where does the metal technetium 99 come from?
Technetium (chemical symbol Tc) is a silver-gray, radioactive metal. It occurs naturally in very small amounts in the earth’s crust, but is primarily man-made. Technetium -99 is produced during nuclear reactor operation, and is a byproduct of nuclear weapons explosions.
How does 99m Tc pertechnetate get out of the body?
Excretion is by the gastrointestinal and renal routes. Although 99m Tc pertechnetate is excreted by glomerular filtration, it is partially reabsorbed by the renal tubules; as a result, only 30% is eliminated in the urine during the first day.
Where can Tc-99 be found in the environment?
Tiny amounts of Tc-99 are part of the environment and are found in food and water. Higher amounts may be found close to contaminated facilities such as federal weapons facilities or nuclear fuel cycle facilities. Exposure to technetium from the environment is unlikely.
