For Children: "An X-ray is a picture of the inside of the body made with special rays. An X-ray can show bones, tissues or parts of organs. X-ray pictures do not hurt." Children's Health care of America. You can not see or feel x-rays. Often multiple x-rays will be taken from different angles, depending on the injury. For Parents: "An actual x-ray is a form of energy. Depending on the energy level of an x-ray, it can either penetrate through the body, or is absorbed. The body and its tissues have many different densities, which will affect how an image appears. Areas such as bone are not easily penetrated; therefore, they appear white on an image. Areas such as the lungs, which are mainly air, are penetrated very easily; therefore, they appear black or grayish on an image. You cannot feel an x-ray as it goes through the body." Children's Hospital of Philadelphia
Here is a video of the Claremont Imaging Center in Claremont, Florida. You can visualize what an exam room looks like and be better prepared for what you will be seeing.
When you arrive at the hospital or the clinic for you procedure you will check in with the front desk.
Depending on what procedure you are having done, you may be asked to change into a hospital gown.
These may be uncomfortable and cold but it will help your doctor get a better picture so they can tell what is wrong with you. The technologist will then lead you back into the room where you will have your procedure. The room may be dark or the lights dimmed, that is so the technologist can see the light on the x-ray machine to get an accurate "picture".
You will be asked to sit or lay on the table. The table is hard and cold so if you don't have one, you can ask for a blanket and pillow! There is a lot of equipment in these rooms, you may feel like you are in a scary movie. Feel free to ask questions and find out what the equipment does. The technologist should explain everything that will be going on so there are no surprises! Each procedure is different so I will go into specifics on various procedures in another post.
A radiologic technologist or radiographer will be doing or assisting with the x-ray or procedure. According to Wikipedia, a Radiographer is a medical professional who applies doses of ionizing radiation or radioactive materials to patients in order to reduce or eradicate tumors and cancer cells and create medical images of the human anatomy to aid radiologists and other doctors diagnose and treat illness and injury. They work in hospitals, clinics, medical laboratories, nursing homes, and in private practice.
Depending on the imaging procedure that you will be having done you can encounter a variety of x-ray equipment. The most common is the general purpose x-ray.
The table can be moved both up and down; many tables have "floating" table tops meaning the top of the table can be moved in any horizontal direction. There is also a "chest bucky", the vertical x-ray receptor used for chest x-rays or other vertical x-rays.
Some procedures may require more than one or two x-rays such as studies of the gastrointestinal tract or placement of PICC lines, therefore, doctors will often use flouroscopy. According to Wikipedia, "Fluoroscopy is an imaging technique commonly used by physicians to obtain real-time moving images of the internal structures of a patient through the use of a fluoroscope. In its simplest form, a fluoroscope consists of an x-ray source and fluorescent screen between which a patient is placed. However, modern fluoroscopes couple the screen to an x-ray image intensifier and CCD video camera allowing the images to be recorded and played on a monitor."
During surgery it may be necessary for the doctor to see a live image of what they are doing or where they are working inside a patient, this is possible with a c-arm (much like fluoroscopy but mobile).
With a c-arm doctors are able to use a constant stream of x-rays to see live x-ray images.
Radiation is fairly complex, with out getting you too confused I will try and give you a "brief" description. The Health Physics Society does a great job of giving an overview of what radiation is and the different types. What Is Radiation?
Radiation is energy that comes from a source and travels through space and may be able to penetrate various materials. Light, radio, and microwaves are types of radiation that are called nonionizing. The kind of radiation discussed in this document is called ionizing radiation because it can produce charged particles (ions) in matter.
Ionizing radiation is produced by unstable atoms. Unstable atoms differ from stable atoms because unstable atoms have an excess of energy or mass or both. Radiation can also be produced by high-voltage devices (e.g., x-ray machines).
Atoms with unstable nuclei are said to be radioactive. In order to reach stability, these atoms give off, or emit, the excess energy or mass. These emissions are called radiation. The kinds of radiation are electromagnetic (like light) and particulate (i.e., mass given off with the energy of motion). Gamma radiation and x rays are examples of electromagnetic radiation. Gamma radiation originates in the nucleus while x rays come from the electronic part of the atom. Beta and alpha radiation are examples of particulate radiation.
Interestingly, there is a "background" of natural radiation everywhere in our environment. It comes from space (i.e., cosmic rays) and from naturally occurring radioactive materials contained in the earth and in living things. Radiation Exposure from Various Sources
Source Exposure External Background Radiation 60 mrem/yr, U.S. Average Natural K-40 and Other Radioactivity in Body 40 mrem/yr Air Travel Round Trip (NY-LA) 5 mrem Chest X-Ray Effective Dose 10 mrem per film Radon in the Home 200 mrem/yr (variable) Man-Made (medical x rays, etc.) 60 mrem/yr (average)
This is a great video clip on how x-rays are produced.
Goal: I am currently a Freshman student in the College of Southern Idaho Radiologic Technology program. My goal is to address radiographic procedures and radiation protection in relation to Pediatrics. I hope to educate parents and children alike and by doing so alleviate some fear of the unknown. If you have specific questions please feel free to comment or e-mail me at heatherhodges@eaglemail.csi.edu. Enjoy!
