Medical imaging, also called radiography, is a medical field in which medical practitioners (radiologists) reproduce various images of the parts of the body for the diagnosis and treatment of diseases.
Radiography involves non-invasive tests that enable physicians to diagnose diseases and injuries without intrusion. Several devices are required to carry out these procedures to produce body parts images. Here are some of these imaging devices:
Computed Tomography (CT) System
Computer Tomography (CT) scan machine combines data from many X-rays to produce detailed 2- or 3-dimensional images of slices or sections of the body’s internal structures.
The different CT machines depend on the number of slices the machine can create, which explains why we have the single and multi-slice CT machines. The multi-slice comes in 4, 6, 8, 16, 32, 40, and 64 slice scanner configurations.
Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) System
MRI scanners use powerful magnetic field gradients, radio waves, and magnetic fields to produce images of the parts of the body. MRI is a medical imaging procedure medical practitioners in radiology use to create pictures of the physiological processes and anatomy of the body.
The MRI machine produces better contrast in the pictures of soft tissues, like the abdomen and brain, than the CT scanner. There are three types of MRI scanners, namely the traditional closed, open, and sitting or standing MRI machines.
Ultrasound Machine
The ultrasound machine uses sound waves of high frequency to create images of the internal part of the body. It has three components: the probe or transducer, the processing unit and controls, and the display.
Medical practitioners use ultrasound machines to diagnose conditions of body organs like the blood vessels, heart, gall bladder, liver, spleen, kidneys, pancreas, bladder, ovaries, thyroid, uterus, eyes, and testicles. Several types of ultrasound machines have unique functions, namely the Endoscopic ultrasound, Doppler ultrasound, Duplex ultrasound, etc.
X-ray machine
Radiologists use the X-ray machine to produce images of dense tissues like teeth, bones, and other body parts by generating penetrating ionizing radiations (X-rays).
The machine radiates a concentrated and heavy beam of electrons, known as X-ray photons, which then traverses through the air, making contact with the body and producing images. There are portable, ceiling-mounted, and floor-mounted types of X-ray machines.
Fluoroscopy Machine
The fluoroscopy machine uses X-rays to allow doctors to watch the real-time moving pictures of the function and internal structures of the body—for example, doctors watching the swallowing action of a patient. The device is helpful for both therapy and diagnosis. A fluoroscopy machine may be mobile or fixed.
Endoscopy Machine
An endoscope is a machine that doctors directly insert into a patient to examine the internal part of a cavity or hollow organ of the body.
Doctors use endoscopy to analyze symptoms in the digestive system such as vomiting, nausea, abdominal pain, gastrointestinal bleeding, and difficulty swallowing. There are various types of endoscopes depending on the diseased organ.
Medical imaging has several branches depending on the organs involved, the diseases, and the procedures. For example, there are different devices for different types of cancers, such as mammography for breast cancer.
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