PET scanner

[ pet skan-er ]

noun

, Computers, Medicine/Medical.

1. a tomographic imaging device that yields visual information (a PET scan ) about the ongoing activity of the brain: positron-emitting isotopes, incorporated into biologically important compounds, are injected intravenously or administered by inhalation, and the resultant gamma radiation is sensed by detectors and converted into computer-generated images of blood flow, oxygen utilization, glucose uptake, etc.

Word History and Origins

Origin of PET scanner¹

First recorded in 1975–80