Myocardial perfusion imaging or radionuclide stress
testing utilizes radioactive substances as tracer agents to evaluate
blood flow to the heart. Patients are stressed by either exercising
on a treadmill, receiving a drug called adenosine which simulates
the body’s response to exercise, or a combination of both.
By comparing the resting pictures of the uptake of isotope in the
heart muscle cells to the pictures obtained during stress, the adequacy
of blood flow to areas of the heart is assessed. The test
is extremely safe with very little radiation exposure in an amount
similar to a CT scan.
