The 4th annual BIR SPECT/CT symposium, run jointly with the British Nuclear Medicine Society proved to be popular once again, with over 130 delegates attending at the Royal Society of Medicine.
The event, organised by the BIR Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging Special Interest Group, was introduced by Dr Gopi Gnanasegaran, Consultant Physician at Guy’s & Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust.
Dr Sairah Khan, from Imperial College NHS Foundation Trust, found the day invaluable for a general overview of SPECT CT. She said “As a radiology registrar sub-specialising in nuclear medicine, it was a fantastic opportunity to get to grips with some of the finer details that I personally find more challenging to report on a day to day basis.”
Dr Khan felt it was difficult to pick out the best talks of the day, given that each of the presentations were of such a high standard, but she did find the musculoskeletal presentations particularly pertinent because this can be complex and challenging to report.
One key presentation was Dr Parthipun and his talk on “SPECT/CT imaging in patients with painful orthopaedic prosthesis” He approached “the painful prosthesis” and his methods of assessing component position were particularly useful and something that Dr Khan will be employing in her everyday clinical practice. Another highlight was Dr Ranju Dhawan’s presentation on SPECT CT of the ankle and foot, with the key message that this is not necessarily a first-line or gold standard modality for musculoskeletal imaging, but an invaluable adjunct especially in terms of trouble-shooting.
Dr Renato Valdés Olmos’ presentation on SPECT CT and sentinel node imaging had exceptional images and video footage. Dr Khan reported that It was a real eye-opener to see the results of sentinel node injections coming to fruition in the operating theatre. “What an insight into the practical applications of SPECT CT!” she said.
Dr Khan recommends this event to fellow colleagues whatever their level of training and feels it will benefit everyone from the novice to the well experienced looking for a good all-round refresher. Not only that the cost was excellent value – just £60 for a trainee, including an excellent lunch.
