Radiology - Preparation for Total Body DXA Scan

Your upcoming DEXA bone density scan includes a Total Body Measurement. This is usually part of research and needs more preparation than a normal DEXA scan as detailed below. If you have any other questions, please contact the x-ray department using the details on your appointment letter or via the switchboard.

Days or weeks before your DEXA appointment

Please contact the radiology department if you have pending appointments for any of the following radiology procedures. They make our measurements unreliable, and we may need to move your scan to a different date:

• Iodine based contrast (x-ray dye injection) or Radioisotope (nuclear medicine) 2 days before the DEXA appointment time
• Barium study (fluoroscopy for your stomach or intestines) 2 weeks before the DEXA appointment

The day before your DEXA appointment

Total body measurements look at your muscles and fat as well as the bones, so they are sensitive to many processes which are going on in your body. To limit those effects please follow these instructions:

• No strenuous exercise on the day before the scan. Rest or take only gentle exercise
• No food for 6 hours before the scan
• Drink normal amounts of fluid in the 6 hours before the scan

When you arrive for your DEXA appointment

To remove any artifacts from the DEXA images, at the start of your appointment you will be asked to:

• Change into a hospital gown
• Remove clothing and jewellery (including bras) other than metal free underwear
• Empty your bladder. There are toilets in the x-ray department