PET scanner: Meaning and Definition of

PET' scan"ner

1. a tomographic imaging device that yields visual information 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.