exametazime at a glance
Medicine class
Diagnostic radiopharmaceutical for brain imaging
Administration
Prepared and injected into a vein by authorised nuclear-medicine staff
After the examination
Drink fluids and empty your bladder regularly
Age group
The selected stabilised product is licensed for adults and is not recommended for children
What is exametazime used for?
The selected product is licensed for diagnostic use in adults during brain-perfusion SPECT.
Assessing regional cerebral blood-flow abnormalities in acute stroke, chronic ischaemia or transient ischaemic attack
Locating and determining the side of epileptogenic foci before surgery
Supporting assessment of suspected Alzheimer's disease or frontotemporal dementia
As an additional technique in diagnosing brain death
How does exametazime work?
When combined with technetium-99m, exametazime forms a fat-soluble complex that crosses the blood–brain barrier. Its distribution reflects regional brain blood flow, and emitted gamma radiation allows a SPECT camera to construct images. It is not expected to have a pharmacological effect at diagnostic concentrations.
How to take exametazime
Exametazime is not self-administered. Authorised staff prepare the radiopharmaceutical and inject it into a vein in a designated clinical setting.
Follow the preparation instructions in your appointment letter.
Drink enough fluid before the examination unless your clinical team advises otherwise.
Keep still when asked during imaging.
Afterwards, drink fluids and empty your bladder regularly to help clear radioactivity.
exametazime side effects
Common or expected effects
- No adverse effects are classified as common.
- Effects reported with unknown frequency include headache, dizziness, tingling, flushing, nausea, vomiting, tiredness and malaise.
Get urgent medical advice
- Hypersensitivity reactions, including rash, hives, itching or angioedema; breathing difficulty or collapse may indicate anaphylaxis.
- Ionising radiation carries a low-probability long-term risk of cancer and hereditary effects.
exametazime in pregnancy
Tell the nuclear-medicine team if you are pregnant, might be pregnant or have missed a period. There are no human pregnancy data. An investigation involving ionising radiation should proceed only when the expected benefit clearly outweighs maternal and fetal risks; a suitable non-ionising alternative should be considered.
exametazime while breastfeeding
Tell the department when arranging the appointment because radioactivity may enter breast milk. If administration is necessary, breastfeeding must be interrupted for 12 hours and expressed milk discarded. Follow the department's written instructions.
exametazime interactions
No interaction studies have been performed, and no drug interactions have been reported. Give the nuclear-medicine team a current medicines list because some medicines can affect particular scans.
Common questions about exametazime
Answers are fully visible for fast scanning and source review.
What is exametazime used for?
It prepares a radioactive tracer used in adult brain-perfusion SPECT to assess regional blood-flow patterns in selected cerebrovascular, epilepsy, dementia and brain-death investigations.
Does exametazime treat dementia, stroke or epilepsy?
No. It is diagnostic rather than therapeutic and helps produce images that may support clinical assessment.
How is exametazime given?
Sources
These sources were used to prepare and review this medicine page.
Prepared and reviewed by the iatroX editorial team.