Will I be able to stay with my child during the scan?
One parent or guardian may stay in the room during the scan, but no other children are allowed.
How are the scans done?
Some children only have a lung perfusion scan, but others have scans for lung perfusion and ventilation. Each scan is done by a nuclear medicine technologist.
If your child is having both scans, the ventilation scan happens first.
Lung ventilation scan
For this scan, your child will be given a mask or mouthpiece and asked to breathe in and out a tiny amount of radioactive mist for about five minutes.
The technologist will then remove the mask or mouthpiece and use a special camera to take pictures of your child's lungs.
Lung perfusion scan
Your child will first be given a small needle (injection) into a vein in their arm or the back of their hand. The injection contains a very small amount of radioactive medicine that mixes with the blood and will go to the lungs.
Your child will then lie down on a narrow table with a safety belt across their stomach to keep them safely in place while a special camera takes pictures of their lungs. In most cases they can watch a movie as the scan is being done.
Note: The injection before the lung perfusion scan is not painful, but your child's hand or arm can still be numbed first with a topical anaesthetic (a special cream or cooling spray). If you would like this option, it is best to arrive at least 30 minutes before your appointment to allow the anaesthetic to take effect.
