I am scheduled to have a CT scan of my head taken in a few days time and I have a few doubts.

I know I can call up the hospital and ask, but it's a government hospital and I have a lot of experience with them. It's very hard to communicate with the doctors and a lot of doctors, pharmacist and nurses make mistakes there which could be life threatening in my situation. If I drop the CT scan it will be very hard to get another appointment date as well as with the specialist.

So I hope any one with medical knowledge or those who have got a CT scan taken help me out. I so will know if I have to call the docs and make a fuss.

The reason I am taking the CT scan is to see if there is any problems with the joints in my jaw. I understand that a contrast agent which is Iodine will be administered before the scan. I have told the doctors that I have a very slight allergic reaction if I eat too much prawns. So they told me to be on the save side, I should take prednisolone before the scan.

So I have a few questions

1) Do I really need to take a scan with the contrast agent in me since they want to see the bones and not the soft tissues or blood vessels.

2) The doctor told me to take 40mg of prednisolone 12 hours before th scan and another 40 2 hours before. However when the pharmacist gave me the drug, they told me to take 80mg twice instead of 40. Then when I told them about what the doctor said, they discussed something among themselves and then said ya the doc is right and actually 80mg is a very high dose.

3)I'm kinda wary about taking prednisolone cause I had a traumatic brain injury, history of seizures and am currently on apo-gabapentin.

4)Am I supposed to fast before the CT scan?

5)What's the CT scan procedure like?

I really appreciate your help. Thanks in advance.

I've had more than my fair share of CAT scans over the past few years (more than I would like) and honestly, you really, really, really need to call the doctor or hospital--even if everyone involved has horrible bedside manners. They're the only people who can give you reliable answers to 1 - 4.

re: #5: It's pretty boring. Based on my personal experiences, I'm guessing this is what you'll do:
- Enter the CAT scan room and change into a hospital gown
- Lie on the machine and get attached to the drip (if they're using a contrast agent)
- Get positioned so that your head is in the middle of the "donut"; if you're on a contrast agent, you'll probably feel something like a hot flash going through your body as the IV is administered
- The technician will ask you to keep still as the machine does its thing. It can get pretty noisy as the scan is run (plus you can see the machinery zoom around you as it happens), but it's nothing to freak out about. I vaguely remember this taking some 30-45 seconds each time.

The technician may go through those steps a few more times for additional images, but that's pretty much it.

Good luck on the test, but I'd suggest you sit down and write down any questions/concerns which you might have in order to be ready for the follow-up consultation. I'm aware that government hospital staff can be a little brusque, but I think it's worth insisting on answers on the spot (rather than being left in the dark about what the diagnoses imply).

This post has been edited by angrydog: Oct 2 2009, 11:07 PM

To answer your questions:
Yes Prednisolone should be taken if u have a history of allergies cos u might get a reaction to the contrast.
The dose is 40mg as informed by the Dr. It is safer to take the Prednisolone cos it will protect u from any unwanted allergic reactions and it is just 2 doses.
If your main complaint is jaw bone pain, I personally do not think a contrast is necessary cos as u have rightly pointed out u just want to see the bones which shows up very well without contrast. Not sure what the Dr is thinking about. Anyway I would suggest u request for a axial cuts, coronal cuts & 3D reconstruction as it will be helpful to the OMF Surgeon later.
I would also suggest u get a simple Xray called the OPG which will show your jaws very well.
A CT scan is done with the patient lying on a flat narrow bed which will be moved into a circular ring shaped device later. That device will move up and down and do the scan. It is a very fast procedure which will take less than 5mins. If a contrast is required, an intravenous cannula will be inserted into your arm earlier to inject the contrast.
Do discuss with the Dr on the need for the contrast.
Good luck!

In the hospital I had my surgery done, I already did an OPG. Being too lazy to check my old records, the current doctor ordered another OPG to be taken. I don't even know if they actually looked closely at the images from the OPG or not, but they then ordered a CT scan. I probably have many CT scan images in my records because a few CT scan was taken when I was in the hospital where my surgery was done. Sigh....

Thanks alot zee.

what hospital is it, pls pm.

For bone you dont need contrast, but probably since you already expose to radiation, the dr want to see you muscle structure as well.

if you still worried, move to private hospital.

hope this helps:

1. no you dont need to take the contrast if they are planning for plain CT. But it does cut time if they see any abnormalities and wanted a contrasted CT instead ie re- scan on the same setting

2&3. its prednisolone 40mg as prescribed by the Dr; and its for precaution for allergic reaction from the contrast

4. Yup, better if u fast before a scan and the procedure is as mentioned on the previous post

Move to a great Hospital like Gleneagles in Jln Ampang, I have experieced a surgery there and such information was plainly explained by various doctors there! This is needed to give a level of comfort to patients

Guys, going to a private hospital does NOT mean that the doctors are better in their medical & surgical skills. They r definitely better in their PR skills cos they have more time & less patients. And u r paying them for the consult.
I would recommend looking for the best doctors for the problem & not looking for the hospital which looks good or which is well advertised.
Good Government hospital doctors r equally capable in counselling & also medical knowledge. Most of the doctors in private were previously from the govt side anyway.

Do you by any chance know any good doctors from government hospitals in KL or PJ? im scoping for a government hospital for my dad as he does not want to pay more for private hospitals...thanks!