Dr. Edward B. Silberstein, M.D.

That question goes to the Emergency Room or Poison Center. Of course, at once start using large amounts of water to wash out the eyes.

Edward B. Silberstein, M.A., M.D.

Our involvement in finding the effects of the virus before severe symptoms occur is in scanning the lung, brain, and kidneys; we can find physiologic abnormalities before anatomic tests like MRI and CT can see the disease, according to preliminary studies.

Edward B. Silberstein, M.A., M.D.

First, nuclear medicine is employed in diagnostic imaging and in internal radiation therapy, the latter usually for cancers. Diagnostic radiology includes both CT (computed tomography) and MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) scans, which often give better anatomic resolution than Nuclear Medicine usually does. However, Nuclear Medicine gives functional information (for example, finding cancer cells with special chemicals on their surfaces) not seen with CT and MRI. So combined with the CT or MRI, Nuclear Medicine techniques find, for example, more prostate cancer than any of the techniques mentioned alone.

Edward B. Silberstein, M.A., M.D.

In storage, there is minimal radiation escaping from these weapons. But they are designed to explode on target and kill hundreds or thousands. These have NOTHING to do with nuclear medicine in design or usage!

Sincerely,

Edward B. Silberstein, M.A., M.D.

No, never. This has nothing to do with bombs and weapons. We diagnose and treat medical conditions with small amounts of radioactive materials. Nuclear medicine has NOTHING to do with war!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Edward B. Silberstein, M.A., M.D.

Yes! Anyone coming within 6 feet of a patient with COVID-19 must have PPE!

Edward B. Silberstein, M.A., M.D.

Yes! Many are radiologists, in fact. One must know how to read CT and MRI studies to correlate with the nuclear images.

Edward B. Silberstein, M.A., M.D.

Huge difference. The technologist has 2-4 years of training after high school. The Nuclear Med doc, unlike the tech, can read the scans, diagnose and treat patients, and has had 12 years training beyond high school.

Edward B. Silberstein, M.A., M.D.

No, it is needed in dealing with all patients.

Edward B. Silberstein, M.A., M.D.

Nuclear medicine has no therapeutic answer to viruses. The amount to "kill" or inactivate a virus is enormous, many thousands of times greater than is employed in any form of medical radiation.

Edward B. Silberstein, M.A., M.D.

Nuclear Medicine diagnostic imaging continues for emergencies!

Any commercial spray used to disinfect tables, toilets, etc., will do, but little research is available on this at this time.


Edward B. Silberstein, M.A., M.D.

No, never...UNLESS (to be absolutely complete in this answer):

One makes the now unheard of mistake of treating thyroid cancer which has spread to the lungs with too high a dose of a specific radioactive material. (That is NOT lung cancer, but thyroid cancer metastatic to the lungs!). We always prevent that by easily measuring the safe dose to be delivered before giving it. We teach that to every doctor learning Nuclear Medicine, supervise these therapies the doctor-in-training performs, and test him/her for this knowledge before allowing that doctor to practice Nuclear Medicine! I doubt there are any Nuclear Medicine practitioners in the U.S. who do not understand this. We have known this since the 1960's, and we test for this safety information easily and safely on all such patients before treatment. Very large amounts of external beam radiation (coming from equipment producing focused radiation outside the body for killing cancer) are carefully aimed at the cancer inside the body, so as not to produce significant normal organ damage. This external beam radiation not what Nuclear Medicine does. Radiation oncologists do this. In the specialty of Nuclear Medicine, we administer, by mouth, artery or vein, cancer-specific radioactive treating drugs (specific for their cancer targets inside the body), giving no harmful radiation to the healthy lungs or rest of the body!

Edward B. Silberstein, M.A., M.D.

No, it would require amounts of radiation HUNDREDS OR thousands of times higher than used for diagnosis and therapy in Nuclear Medicine.

Edward B. Silberstein, M.A., M.D.

If you are an asymptomatic carrier, you must NOT WORK in a hospital, but self-quarantine at once. You can give the disease to someone over 80 where up to 14% die!!!

Edward B. Silberstein, M.A., M.D.

Any materials to be shipped which are radioactive must be shipped in containers regulated by the Dept of Transportation so that nothing escapes into the environment to be inhaled.

Absolutely not! The radiation the nuclear medicine worker receives is in such a small quantity that it has no biological effects. Nor does the natural radiation we receive from cosmic rays, radon, etc.

To be a nuclear medicine physician be sure to take at least introductory physics and chemistry, but get a liberal education, as you will be immersed in medicine intensely until your late 20's at least, and probably much longer.

For nuclear med. technology there are good programs, including mine at the University of Cincinnati. Check it out at cahs.uc.edu. You may be called on to perform ultrasound, computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging also, at many hospitals today, so be sure you learn how to do all these.

Sincerely,


Edward B. Silberstein, M.A., M.D.

Eugene L. and Sue R. Saenger Professor

of Radiological Health and Medicine, Emeritus

silbereb@uc.edu<mailto:silbereb@uc.edu>

(o) 513-584-2423

(c) 513-532-7367

Physics will help, but you need a Nuclear Medicine/imaging curriculum as you may be asked to employ CT, MRI ultrasound, etc., equipment in the really good hospitals. The University of
Cincinnati has such a program.
Good luck!

Some suggest it came with the invention of the cyclotron in 1933 by Ernest Lawrence, which made radioactive phosphorus-32 to treat certain blood conditions.
Others suggest it was 1928 when Hermann Blumgart in Boston used radioactive sodium to measure heart function.
From 1941-1945 radioactive iodine was employed to measure thyroid function, cure overactive thyroid conditions and finally to cure thyroid cancer.
The Society of Nuclear Medicine met for the first time about 1958 and the first Board exam in Nuclear Medicine occurred in 1972, sponsored by the older specialties of Medicine, Radiology, and Pathology.

Edward B. Silberstein, M.A., M.D.