Uses In Medicine

Looking Inside the Human Body

You probably already know that doctors use x-rays to look at bones inside the human body. Now they can also look at how internal organs, such as the heart and brain, function by taking pictures of the radiation given off by certain radioisotopes that are injected into the body like a shot.

Some elements concentrate naturally in certain parts of the body-iodine in the thyroid, potassium in the muscles, and so one. For this reason, doctors can use radioisotopes of these elements for certain types of procedures. If the required radioisotope does not concentrate naturally in the organ under study, a radioisotope can be used to carry it to the organ so that a picture can be taken. This process is called labeling and can help doctors diagnose disease.

Heart Disease and Other Diagnoses

Doctors can also use radioisotopes to detect the risk of heart disease. Doctors inject radioisotopes into the patient's blood while the patient exercises on a treadmill. The radioisotope concentrates in the heart and allows doctors to follow the blood flow. Looking at an image of the heart, doctors can see whether there is less blood flow through the arteries leading to the heart, which can signal heart disease.

Doctors can use other similar methods to study the circulatory system and examine brain activity. These methods can help us understand diseases such as epilepsy, Down's syndrome, and strokes.

Cancer Treatment

The property of radiation that makes it dangerous also makes it useful in healing. When radiation's energy is deposited in living tissue, cells can be damaged or destroyed. For this very reason, radioisotopes play an important role in cancer therapy. Large doses of radiation focused directly on a cancer can destroy it with little damage to surrounding tissue.

Surgical Tools

In addition to their importance in the diagnosis and treatment of diseases, radioisotopes play an important role in the sterilization of medical supplies. Syringes, surgical gloves, and certain ointments and powders that might be damaged by regular sterilization can be made safe from germs and contamination by radiation from radioisotopes. Other supplies, such as test tubes and surgical instruments, are also sterilized with radiation.