radiopharmaceutical radiopharmaceutical radiopharmaceuticals, or medicinal radiocompounds, are a group of pharmaceutical drugs containing radioactive isotopes. radiopharmaceuticals can be used as diagnostic and therapeutic agents. radiopharmaceuticals emit radiation themselves, which is different from contrast media which absorb or alter external electromagnetism or ultrasound. radiopharmacology is the branch of pharmacology that specializes in these agents. a carbon-11 labelled radiopharmaceutical atc codes v various v01 allergens v03 all other therapeutic products v04 diagnostic agents v06 general nutrients v07 all other non-therapeutic products v08 contrast media v09 diagnostic radiopharmaceuticals v10 therapeutic radiopharmaceuticals v20 surgical dressings a b c d g h qi j l m n p r s v the main group of these compounds are the radiotracers used to diagnose dysfunction in body tissues. while not all medical isotopes are radioactive, radiopharmaceuticals are the oldest and still most common such drugs. drug nomenclature main article: radiopharmacology § drug nomenclature for radiopharmaceuticals as with other pharmaceutical drugs, there is standardization of the drug nomenclature for radiopharmaceuticals, although various standards coexist. the international nonproprietary names (inns), united states pharmacopeia (usp) names, and iupac names for these agents are usually similar other than trivial style differences. the details are explained at radiopharmacology § drug nomenclature for radiopharmaceuticals. specific radiopharmaceuticals a list of nuclear medicine radiopharmaceuticals follows. some radioisotopes are used in ionic or inert form without attachment to a pharmaceutical; these are also included. there is a section for each radioisotope with a table of radiopharmaceuticals using that radioisotope. the sections are ordered alphabetically by the english name of the radioisotope. sections for the same element are then ordered by atomic mass number. calcium-47 47ca is a beta and gamma emitter. name investigation route of administration in-vitro / in-vivo imaging / non-imaging ca-47-ca2+ bone metabolism iv in-vitro non-imaging carbon-11 11c is a positron emitter. name investigation route of administration in-vitro / in-vivo imaging / non-imaging c11-l-methyl-methionine brain tumour imaging parathyroid imaging iv in-vivo imaging carbon-14 14c is a beta emitter. name investigation route of administration in-vitro / in-vivo imaging / non-imaging c14-glycocholic acid breath test for small intestine bacterial overgrowth oral in-vitro non-imaging c14-paba (para-amino benzoic acid) pancreatic studies oral in-vitro non-imaging c14-urea breath test to detect helicobacter pylori oral in-vitro non-imaging c14-d-xylose breath test for small intestine bacterial overgrowth oral in-vitro non-imaging chromium-51 51cr is a gamma emitter. name investigation route of administration in-vitro / in-vivo imaging / non-imaging cr51-[heart scan/blood volume red cell volume heart scan; sites of sequestration; gastrointestinal blood loss iv in-vitro non-imaging cr51-cr3+ gastrointestinal protein loss iv in-vitro non-imaging cr51-edta (ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid) glomerular filtration rate measurement iv in-vitro non-imaging cobalt-57 57co is a gamma emitter. name investigation route of administration in-vitro / in-vivo imaging / non-imaging co57-cyanocobalamin (vitamin b12) gastrointestinal absorption oral in-vitro non-imaging cobalt-58 58co is a gamma emitter. name investigation route of administration in-vitro / in-vivo imaging / non-imaging co58-cyanocobalamin (vitamin b12) gastrointestinal absorption oral in-vitro non-imaging erbium-169 169er is a beta emitter. name treatment of route of administration er169-colloid arthritic conditions intra-articular fluorine-18 18f is a positron emitter with a half-life of 109 minutes. it is produced in medical cyclotrons, usually from oxygen-18, and then chemically attached to a pharmaceutical. see pet scan. name investigation route of administration in-vitro / in-vivo imaging / non-imaging f18-fdg (fluorodeoxyglucose) tumor imaging myocardial imaging iv in-vivo imaging f18-sodium fluoride bone imaging iv in-vivo imaging f18-fluorocholine prostate tumor imaging iv in-vivo imaging f18-desmethoxyfallypride dopamine receptor imaging iv in-vivo imaging gallium-67 67ga is a gamma emitter. see gallium scan. name investigation route of administration in-vitro / in-vivo imaging / non-imaging ga67-ga3+ tumor imaging iv in-vivo imaging ga67-ga3+ infection/inflammation imaging iv in-vivo imaging gallium-68 68ga is a positron emitter, with a 68-minute half-life, produced by elution from germanium-68 in a gallium-68 generator or by proton irradiation of zinc-68.