Allied Health: Imaging Services

An imaging test is a way to let doctors see what’s going on inside the body.

These tests send forms of energy (x-rays, sound waves, radioactive particles, or magnetic fields) through the body.

The changes in energy patterns made by body tissues create an image or picture.

These pictures can show normal body structures and functions as well as abnormal ones caused by diseases like cancer. 

A doctor, a certified technologist, or other health professional may perfom an imaging test.

A radiologist is a specialist in imaging techniques. They are the person who usually reads (interprets) the image made during the test.

The radiologist writes a report on the findings and sends the report to the doctor.

A copy of the report will become part of the patient records.

For baseline studies

For cancer screenings 

To help identify the stage of the cancer

To plan treatment options

To identify muscle, bone & joint injuires

To find out if a cancer has returned

To assist with biopsies

Radiographs, most often called x-rays, produce shadow-like images of bones and certain organs and tissues.

X-rays are very good at identifying injuries to bone.

They may also show some organs and soft tissues.

X-rays may be used to get information quickly and cost less than other scans.

MRI scans create cross-section pictures of the inside of the body.

MRI scans use strong magnets instead of radiation to make the images.

MRI scans also create pictures of soft tissue parts of the body that are sometimes hard to see using other imaging tests.

MRI scans are useful at identifying and pinpointing certain cancers.

CT scans show a slice, or cross-section, of the body.

The image shows the bones, organs, and soft tissues more clearly than standard x-rays.

CT scans are a noninvasive way to show a tumor’s shape, size, and location, and even the blood vessels that feed the tumor.

Because the picture is made by a computer, it can be enlarged to make it easier to see and interpret.

The computer then creates a black and white picture that shows a slice of a certain area of the body – much like looking at a single slice from a loaf of bread.

The picture can be made clearer by the use of special contrast materials which can be swallowed as a liquid, put into a vein, or put into the intestines.

(PET) scan is an imaging test that uses a radioactive substance called a tracer to look for disease in the body.

The image reveals how parts of the patient’s body function by the way they break down the radiotracer.

A PET image will display different levels of positrons according to brightness and color.

The tracer is given through a vein (IV), most often on the inside of the elbow and travel to areas inside the body that use the natural chemical.

An ultrasound machine creates images called sonograms by giving off high-frequency sound waves that go through the body.

As the sound waves bounce off the organs and tissues, they create echoes.

The machine makes these echoes into real-time pictures that can be seen on a computer display screen.

Ultrasound is very good at getting pictures of some soft tissue diseases that do not show up well on x-rays.

Location of injury/disease

Type of injury/disease

Whether or not a biopsy (tissue sample) is needed

The balance between any risks or side effects and the expected benefits

Cost