Information for Families
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- If your infant or child is admitted to UCLA for 18F DOPA PET Scan, he or she will be under the care of the hospitalist team.
- You will be seen by the inpatient Pediatric Endocrinology team; you may also have visits from other services, including child life, social work, occupational therapy, nutrition, case management, surgery, radiology, and anesthesia.
- The scan lasts approximately 75 minutes; we place infants to sleep for the scan with the help of an anesthesiologist. NG and G tubes are removed prior to the scan, to reduce interference. During the scan, blood sugars are monitored every hour and maintained with IV fluids containing sugar.
- Once the scan is completed, your child will resume their home regimen of feeding and medications. We will go over the scan results with you after they are interpreted by the radiologist, and we will communicate these results to your regular doctor
- The following websites may be useful:
- Congenital Hyperinsulinism International - An organization founded by parents of children diagnosed with congenital hyperinsulinism. This website is an excellent resource to learn more about this rare disease.
- The Hyperinsulinism Global Registry - A patient-powered research initiative sponsored by Congenital Hyperinsulinism International that was established to improve knowledge and care of patients with hyperinsulinism.