In Your Head: A Review of Radiopharmaceuticals for Brain Imaging

Course overview

Learning Objectives: At the completion of this activity, the participant will be able to: 1. Review the blood brain barrier (BBB), its basic function to protect the brain, and how radiotracers are categorized into those that cross the BBB and those that do not 2. Review historical and current radiopharmaceuticals used to image the blood brain barrier, brain death and cerebral perfusion 3. Provide an in-depth review of current FDA-approved SPECT agents Tc99m-HMPAO (Ceretec) and Tc99m-bicisate (Neurolite) including basic chemistry, clinical indications, preparation parameters and clinical use, including pearls and pitfalls for nuclear pharmacists 4. Describe other imaging modalities for imaging structure and function of the brain as compared to nuclear medicine imaging NOTE: An annual subscription for Purdue's nuclear pharmacy re-certification program provides access to both the continuing education component of the program and the "Radiopharmacy Portal" a reference resource for practitioners. Subscriptions to the continuing educational offerings, which have been accredited through ACPE and BPS, can be purchased for an annual fee of $225 for nuclear pharmacists and $125 for nuclear pharmacy technicians.