Radiologic technology captures x-ray and other images.
Radiologic technology involves more than the simple x-ray camera familiar to dental or first-aid patients. While x-ray technology continues to play an important part in medical diagnosis, computerized tomography has added a third dimension to the images obtained, creating detailed pictures from multiple images. Magnetic resonance imaging uses electromagnetic energy to achieve a similar "3D" view of internal tissues.
Purpose
Radiologic technology aims to get a better view inside the human body without invading the tissues surgically. This type of technology affords quick and simple diagnoses of a wide range of ailments, from broken bones to tumors, while avoiding the extra pain and risk of exploratory surgery to achieve the same findings. The advent of more advanced radiologic techniques gives increasingly detailed and accurate information to doctors, allowing them to treat their patients more effectively.
Techniques
A simple radiologic examination uses an x-ray machine to view and photograph the hard inner structures of a patient's body, such as bones and teeth. Other technologies include computerized tomography, or CT, and magnetic resonance imaging, or MRI. Both of these technologies take cross-section images of the body to indicate three-dimensional structures. To get a better view of soft tissue abnormalities, an additional technique called flouroscopy involves giving the patient a drink that shows up on imaging devices, allowing doctors to view the soft tissues of the digestive system.
Equipment
An x-ray machine includes an x-ray camera poised over a table containing a film or digital imaging plate, according to Radiology Info. A CT machine combines a rotating x-ray scanner with a moving examination table, taking multiple exposures as both components move. A computer then receives and interprets these exposures as "slices," reassembling them into a three-dimensional image. An MRI machine consists of a cylindrical drum containing a series of electromagnetic coils. The electrified coils generate radio waves that penetrate the body, reflecting images that a computer can display, interpret, copy to disk or print in hardcopy form.
Process
In a standard x-ray procedure, the patient removes any metal objects that might block the path of the radiologic scanners, and the radiologic technician drapes a lead shielding material around parts of the body not involved in the scan. The technician then aims an x-ray camera at the unshielded part and exposes it to a brief burst of x-rays. CT tests require the patient to lie down on the moving examination table while the scanner takes its pictures. For an MRI scan, the patient may have to lie inside the cylindrical drum while the x-rays capture multiple images.
Operators
The technical staff who perform radiologic procedures include radiologic technicians and radiologic technologists, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Radiologic technicians handle standard x-ray photography, while radiologic technologists operate the CT and MRI scanners. In addition to their skill in operating their respective machines, these workers must protect the patients and themselves against danger from radiation exposure or other equipment hazards.
Tags: x-ray camera, better view, computerized tomography, cylindrical drum, examination table