Comparing the Patient Experience Between a 360° γ-Camera and a Conventional Dual-Head γ-Camera

Abstract

Our aim was to explore whether the 360° γ-camera design of the Veriton-CT scanner adversely affects the rate of scan noncompletion due to claustrophobia or other patient experience factors, when compared with a standard dual-head Discovery NM/CT 670 γ-camera. Methods: This was a single-center prospective study of all nuclear medicine studies on either of the 2 γ-cameras. It was recorded whether the patient completed the scan as protocoled or, because of claustrophobia, had a shortened scan or no scan. The patients were also offered a patient experience questionnaire, with domains of comfort, scan time, scan noise, and claustrophobia assessed using a 5-point Likert scale. Results: Over a 4-mo period, 296 patients were scanned on the Discovery and 274 patients on the Veriton-CT. There was a scan noncompletion rate, due to claustrophobia, of 1.35% for the Discovery and 1.46% for the Veriton-CT. Of the 570 patients involved, 354 (62%) returned their questionnaires. There was no statistical difference between the responses for comfort, scan time, scan noise, or feelings of claustrophobia. Conclusion: The study provides evidence that the 360° γ-camera design of the Veriton-CT does not lead to a significantly increased scan failure rate due to claustrophobia and that there is no change in the subjective experience for patients.