Planar Module: NM (8-23-2024)

Sites are required to submit two separate planar studies for each unit to be accredited.  Each exam must be from a different patient (i.e., if Mr. Jones is submitted for a Bone Whole Body (WB) exam, you must submit a different patient for the Bone SPECT exam). Please see the article on Modalities with Low Volume or Emergency Use as needed. 

Whenever possible, submit normal nuclear medicine exams; however, abnormal exams may be submitted if no high-quality normal studies are available. 

IMPORTANT: If MUGA is performed on the unit and the site is NOT applying for the Nuclear Cardiology module, the site MUST select MUGA as one of the exams. 

For each scan submitted, the site is required to submit the full set of images. Multiple day exams MUST be clearly marked as to the delay of the post radiopharmaceutical administration. 

A bone whole body or bone spot exam is required, plus one exam from the following list. If the unit does not perform bone scans, two exams must be selected from the list below. Test Image Data Forms for the exams listed here are attached below, with the exception of the Test Image Data Form for MUGA, which is provided in our Nuclear Cardiology article.

• Bone Whole Body exam (must include additional 3phase, spots, and SPECT if also acquired)

• Bone Spot exam (must include additional 3phase, WB, and SPECT if also acquired)

• Breast* exam (see below)

• Gallium Whole Body exam (must include additional spots and SPECT if also acquired)

• Gallium Spot exam (must include additional WB and SPECT if also acquired)

• Gastric Emptying exam (Solids only and must include the entire series and the results/curves/ROIs if also acquired/processed. There are two options for image submission and protocols: 1.) Anterior and posterior views (with geometric mean) or 2.) Left anterior oblique (LAO) view. Anterior images only are not acceptable.)

• Hepatobiliary exam (must include the entire series, including GB EF images/curve/ROIs if also acquired/processed)

• I-123 or I-131 Whole Body exam (must include additional spots and SPECT if also acquired)

• I-123 or I-131 Spot exam (must include additional WB and SPECT if also acquired)

• MUGA** exam (see below)

• Octreotide Whole Body exam (must include additional spots and SPECT if also acquired)

• Octreotide Spot exam (must include additional WB and SPECT if also acquired)

• Perfusion lung exam (must include ventilation images if also acquired)

• Renal exam (must include entire series and results/curves/ROIs if also acquired/processed)

• Thyroid exam (must include percent uptake display if also acquired)

*Breast: Breast studies will fail if they are not correctly labeled (RCC, LCC, RMLO, LMLO). 'Breast' may only be selected for planar imaging for dedicated breast scanners. General nuclear medicine scanners cannot select the breast exam.

**MUGA: Images of the entire cardiac cycle for each projection must be submitted for the MUGA, as well as an image of the ejection fraction curve with ROIs. Images submitted must match the submitted written procedure. For example, if the written procedure states that 3 views are acquired routinely, then a splash page/cine file for all 3 views must be included along with the result/EF curve display page.

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