What is a Kidney Scan?
The kidneys remove waste products from the blood stream and excrete these in the urine. There are two ways of looking at kidney function. The first looks at the way a small amount of radioactivity given into a vein, gets to the kidneys. If it is important to measure individual kidney function, the second way will be used. This needs an injection of a small quantity of radioactivity into a vein, while lying under the camera that takes the pictures. The excretion of the radioactivity through the kidney, into the bladder is imaged.

Preparation for the Scan
There are no special preparations for a kidney scan. You can eat drink and take any medication as normal.
If you are pregnant, think you may be pregnant or breast feeding please tell the technician
Please avoid prolongued close contact with small children and babies for the rest of the day.

Is it safe for me to have a scan?
The small amount of radioactive tracer injected is used to take the pictures.  The risk is outweighed by the information that is gained by taking the scan. A doctor will have checked the request to make sure this is the optimal test before we contact you.
If you have any concerns or would like further information, please contact the person who is looking after you.

The injection
A small amount of radioactivity will be injected into a vein in your arm
We then have to wait for this to get into your kidneys, so you will be asked to wait 2-4 hours. You will be asked to drink fluids to encourage your kidneys to work. During this time you can leave the department and eat and drink normally.

Your scan
You will not have to get undressed, but will be asked to remove any metal objects like braces, jewellery and belts before you lie on the bed
You will be asked to go to the toilet to empty your bladder
The scans are taken by a special camera; this is not a tunnel, but may well come very close to you. There are sensors in the camera which stop the machines moving if they touch anything.
You will not be left on your own – there will be someone immediately available.
The scans usually take about 30 minutes

Your Results
Your scans will be looked at by a doctor, who will agree the report and this will be sent to the doctor who requested your scan. The reason it is done this way is because your doctor will have all the results from other tests and will be able to tell you how the results if your scans affect your care.

Information about you
As part of your care, information will be shared between clinical staff, some of whom you may not meet. It may also be used to help train staff involved in your care. Information we collect may also be used after you have been treated to help us improve the quality of our care, to plan services or to research into new developments.
 All information is treated as confidential and is not given to anyone who does not need it. If you have any concerns, please discuss these with the doctor or person looking after you.

More information?
All the staff would like to make your visit as pleasant as possible. If you have any concerns please talk to the person looking after you.

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