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PET scan

   Also found in: Dictionary/thesaurus, Medical, Wikipedia, Hutchinson 0.06 sec.
PET scan (pĕt) or positron emission tomography (pŏz`ĭtrŏn' ĭmĭsh`ən təmŏg`rəfē), a medical imaging technique that monitors metabolic, or biochemical, activity in the brain and other organs by tracking the movement and concentration of a radioactive tracer injected into the bloodstream. The technique uses special computerized imaging equipment and rings of detectors surrounding the patient to record gamma radiation gamma radiation, high-energy photons emitted as one of the three types of radiation resulting from natural radioactivity . It is the most energetic form of electromagnetic radiation , with a very short wavelength (high frequency).
..... Click the link for more information.  produced when positrons (positively charged particles) emitted by the tracer collide with electrons.

PET scans are especially valuable in imaging the brain. They are used in medicine to diagnose brain tumors and strokes, and to locate the origins of epileptic activity; in psychiatry to examine brain function in schizophrenia schizophrenia (skĭt'səfrē`nēə)
..... Click the link for more information. , bipolar disorder bipolar disorder, formerly manic-depressive disorder or manic-depression, severe mental disorder involving manic episodes that are usually accompanied by episodes of depression .
..... Click the link for more information. , and other mental illnesses; and in neuropsychology to study such brain functions and capabilities as speech, reading, memory, and dreaming.



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After 4 months, Bremner's team gave each person a second PET scan.
Acne drug affects brain function by Science News
The PET scan is part of Gould's new plan for preventing heart disease before it attacks, and is based on 30 years of study and research.
PULSE BODY CASTING TWO BOOKS EXAMINE THE SHAPES OF OUR BODIES AND HOW ... by Daily News (Los Angeles, CA)
For example, PET scan studies have shown that introverted and extraverted people have distinctly different patterns of blood flow in the brain.
The Science of Reading Minds by Hinrichs, Bruce H. / The Humanist
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