Status and Development of Nuclear Medicine Over One Decade in Beijing

Abstract

Objective Our objective was to investigate the basic information of the personnel and facilities of nuclear medicine in Beijing. Methods This survey was performed by the Beijing Quality Control Center in 2018. The investigation included personnel, equipment, and clinical applications, and data were then compared with previous surveys. The paper questionnaires were used for the survey, which required information about the personnel, devices, and clinical applications. Results About 38 nuclear medicine departments in Beijing were involved in the survey. The number of nuclear medicine staff was 531 in 2018, showing an increase of 58.7% over the past decade. Positron emission tomography/computed tomography (PET/CT), single-photon emission computed tomography (SPECT), and single-photon emission computed tomography/computed tomography (SPECT/CT) represented the main nuclear medicine facilities, and the total number of surveyed departments was 18, 24, and 34, respectively. The quality control results showed significant improvement from the 2005 levels. The total number of scintigraphy procedures was estimated at 199,607 (153,185 SPECT and 46,422 PET/CT). The estimated annual number of scintigraphy images was 8.9 per 1,000 population for SPECT and 2.7 per 1,000 population for PET/CT during 2018. The most frequent radioiodine-targeted therapy was ¹³¹ I-targeted therapy for hyperthyroidism in 2018. Conclusion Nuclear medicine has experienced rapid growth in the past 10 years in Beijing, either in personnel, equipment, and scintigraphy. Future efforts will focus on the use of new isotopes in the diagnosis, implementing quality strategy, and enhancing training.

Keywords: nuclear medicine imaging; nuclear medicine personnel; nuclear medicine practice; positron emission tomography; quality control; single-photon emission computed tomography.

Fig. 1

( A ) The changes in large-scale equipment based on survey year. ( B ) Chronological changes for the percentages of hospitals performing QC from 2005 to 2018. ( C ) The annual number of scans (thousands) using nuclear medicine in Beijing. QC, quality control; PET, positron emission tomography; PET/CT, positron emission tomography/computed tomography; SPECT, single-photon emission computed tomography; SPECT/CT, single-photon emission computed tomography/computed tomography. * In 2015, the Nuclear Medicine Quality Control Center in Beijing revised the equipment quality control standards, removing the requirement for monthly quality control. So, the standard of QC was daily, weekly, and semiannual in 2018. ^# Not involved in survey of 2005.