Division of Nuclear Medicine
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| PET exam information
(for patients) PET Scheduling information (for referring physicians) Special studies available in the Division of Nuclear Medicine General information about the Division of Nuclear Medicine Studies requiring patient preparation Contact Information (for referring physicians) We are an accredited nuclear imaging facility
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 Scheduling forms
(please also call to schedule, in addition to faxing form)
PET Physician Request forms
Other Nuclear Medicine Scheduling forms
Fax and scheduling desk phone numbers
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This page last updated 10-16-07.
Brochures (in PDF format) are available for download, which include patient preparation, directions, and general study information
If you have trouble accessing these PDF documents, the information is also available in simple text-only form.
Whole body PET imaging at BJH (text only)
Brain and Heart PET imaging at BJH (text only)
The Division of Nuclear Medicine has 16 gamma cameras, 2 bone densitometry units, and 2 PET scanners, and conducts over 31,000 examinations per year.
Studies are performed at both the north and south campuses of Barnes-Jewish Hospital, and at St. Louis Children's Hospital. All of these facilities are located within a few blocks of the intersection of Interstate 64 (U.S. Highway 40) and Kingshighway Boulevard in St. Louis, Missouri.
Patient studies may be scheduled by calling the following numbers:
Barnes-Jewish Hospital- South Campus: (314) 362-1952
Barnes-Jewish Hospital-North Campus: (314) 454-7235
(All bone densitometry studies are done at this facility.)St. Louis Children's Hospital: (314) 454-2525
Clinical PET Facility (at Barnes-Jewish Hospital-South Campus): (314) 362-7418
(An asterisk "*" indicates that the scheduling physician or his nurse must speak to a nuclear medicine physician when scheduling the study.)
ACE-Inhibited Renal Scintigraphy*
Best results will be obtained if all ACE-inhibitor medication is held for 2-3 days before the examination.
Blood Volume *
No therapeutic phlebotomy for 3-4 weeks.
Gastric Emptying Study *
No food after midnight on night before the test (if patient is diabetic, discuss with nuclear medicine physician for further instructions).
Hepatobiliary Scintigraphy*
No food for 4 hours before the examination.
MIBG Scintigraphy *
Many interfering medications and need to block thyroid gland before the test. Call for further information.
Myocardial imaging
No food after midnight on night before the test (if patient is diabetic, discuss with nuclear medicine physician for further instructions).
No caffeinated or decaffeinated beverages (including coffee, tea, hot chocolate, colas and most other soft drinks) the evening before the examination or on the morning of the examination (and it is preferable to avoid any coffee or caffeine for a full 24 hours prior to the exam).
Octreotide Scintigraphy *
It is preferable (but not essential) to discontinue treatment with Sandostatin® for 24 hours before the examination.
PET Imaging *
See PET section above.
Schilling Test * (without intrinsic factor)
No vitamin B12 shots for 7-10 days before the study. No vitamin pills containing vitamin B12 for 1-2 days before the study.
No food on the morning of the examination.
Must be able to collect all urine for 24-48 hours after the start of the study.
Thyroid Scintigraphy *
Discontinue thyroid hormone pills for at least 2 weeks before the study. No iodinated contrast agents for 7-10 days before the study.
Thyroid Uptake and Treatment *
Discontinue propylthiouracil or methimazole at least 3 days before the appointment. No iodinated contrast agents for 3-4 weeks before the study. For women of childbearing age who have not had a tubal ligation or hysterectomy, a pregnancy test should be obtained as close as possible (maximum 7 days) to the day of treatment with I-131. Patient must not be breast-feeding or recently lactating. Unless the patient has had known longstanding Graves' disease or toxic nodular goiter, thyroid function tests (especially TSH) within 3 weeks of the scheduled appointment are recommended.
Whole Body Iodine-131 Scintigraphy *
Discontinue thyroid hormone pills for 3 weeks before the study, with measurement of serum TSH a few days before the examination. No iodinated contrast agents for 3-4 weeks before the study. For women of childbearing age who have not had a tubal ligation or hysterectomy, a pregnancy test should be obtained within 7 days before administration of I-131. Patient must not be breast-feeding or recently lactating.
Further information on our exams is available by discussion with a nuclear medicine physician at (314) 362-2802, as well as in our division procedure manual.
Body FDG-PET imaging is indicated for evaluation of a variety of proven or suspected malignant neoplasms for addressing the following clinical problems:
A good review of uses of PET imaging can be found at auntminnie.com (free registration may be required). The Society of Nuclear Medicine page on "What is PET? and their included links are also useful. The Academy of Molecular Imaging has additional information on PET imaging. In all cases, PET is indicated only if the study is likely to change clinical management.
Post-therapy studies to assess for residual tumor should be delayed for approximately 2 months following completion of chemotherapy or radiotherapy, if possible.
To schedule an oncologic PET study, call our PET scheduling desk at 314-362-7418 to obtain a study date and time, and then fax a completed Physician PET Request Form (available in our Scheduling forms section) to 314-362-1032. After review of the form, you may be contacted to obtain additional information, if needed.
For patient preparation, see the PET patient information section above. If patient is diabetic, discuss with a nuclear medicine physician for further instructions. Drinking water and taking medications (except for insulin and oral hypoglycemic agents) are acceptable.
Medicare has approved FDG-PET studies in selected situations for:
Other tumors may be covered as part of prospective clinical studies, as noted in a table summarizing PET coverage in oncology, with additional information available here.
Information from Missouri Medicare is also available, but the local policy may lag slightly behind the latest national changes.
Brain FDG-PET imaging is primarily used for evaluation of patients with:
Of these, only the first and third indications are approved by Medicare.
To schedule a brain PET study, call our scheduling desk at 314-362-7418. For dementia patients, Medicare has very stringent requirements for PET imaging -- please carefully review and fill out the "non-tumor Brain PET scheduling form" (available in our Scheduling forms section) which is designed to include all the requirements of the CMS decision memo .
Note that a minimum fasting interval of 4 hours is recommended before the study (consult nuclear medicine physician if patient is diabetic). Post-therapy studies to assess for residual tumor should be delayed for approximately 4 weeks following completion of chemotherapy or radiotherapy, if possible.
Cardiac PET with C-11 acetate is indicated for the detection of viable myocardium in patients with coronary artery disease.
To schedule a cardiac PET study, call our scheduling desk at 314-362-7418
Patient without known diabetes should remain NPO after midnight prior to the cardiac PET study. Patients on oral diabetic medication should remain NPO after midnight but take their medication. Patients with insulin dependent diabetes should adhere to their normal dietary and insulin schedule.
PET-CT
North campus:
South campus:
Childrens hospital
Generic radiology scheduling forms for Barnes-Jewish and St. Louis Children's Hospitals are available, and the scheduling desk phone numbers are listed above. For same-day exams, you will need to talk to personnel in the reading room.
