Radiology technology is a term that is applied to the health profession that makes use of imaging technology in order to diagnose and treat disease. Radiology can be divided into two areas that include diagnostic and interventional radiology. Diagnostic radiology helps healthcare professionals observe structures in the body. Interventional radiology involves doctors using imaging techniques such as CT, MRI, ultrasound, and fluoroscope to help guide medical procedures. This paper is a summary of the various types of radiology technology to show that radiology technology has significantly evolved and can be used to treat various procedures.
Diagnostic Radiology
Diagnostic radiology helps healthcare professionals undertake several tasks such as diagnosing causes of symptoms, monitor how the body is responding to treatment, and screen for illnesses such as heart disease, colon cancer, and breast cancer (Choy et al., 2018). Diagnostic radiologists would make use of medical images such as X-rays, CT scans, ultrasounds, MRI scans, fluoroscopy, nuclear medicine, and mammography technology.
Delegate your assignment to our experts and they will do the rest.
Types of Diagnostic Radiology
An X-ray is created by capturing an image of a body part through passing a beam on the part being examined. An example of an x-ray exam is the chest exam. CT scans are studies of the body that makes use of multiple projections of x-ray beams in order to create a cross-sectional image of an anatomic region or an organ. MRI makes use of radio waves in a strong magnetic field to provide a three-dimensional image of organs and body structures being examined. Ultrasonography makes use of imaging of the anatomy through the use of high-frequency sound waves. Fluoroscopy shows a continuous X-ray image on a monitor similar to an X-ray movie.
Interventional Radiology
Interventional radiology involves doctors making use of the various imaging techniques such as CT, ultrasound, fluoroscopy, and MRI to assist in the diagnosis of various procedures. The technology can be used to treat cancers, tumors, blockages in veins and arteries, fibroids of the uterus, and even kidney problems. The doctor can insert catheters, wires, or other small instruments and tools in the body to allow for smaller incisions and cuts. A very small incision and sometimes no incision will be made when carrying out this procedure and one does not need to stay at the hospital after carrying out the procedure.
Examples of Interventional Radiology Procedures
Interventional radiology procedures are used to treat various conditions. Angiography involves an x-ray of arteries and veins to diagnose blockages and other problems in blood vessels by the use of a contrast agent to make the artery visible on the x-ray. Chemoembolization is used to deliver cancer-fighting agents on cancer tumor cells. It is used to treat cancers in the endocrine system and liver cancer. Embolization involves the delivery of clotting agents to an area that is bleeding to block blood flow to a specific problem area. Radiofrequency (RF) ablation is used to kill cancer tumors by using radiofrequency energy. Needle biopsy test is used to treat different organs such as lungs, thyroid glands, and breasts, it is an alternative to surgical biopsy. Stent involves having a small flexible tube used to hold open clogged blood vessels in order to treat a variety of medical conditions (“Interventional Radiology”, 2019).
Conclusion
In conclusion, the above analysis shows that radiology technology has increasingly evolved. Radiology technology is a makes use of imaging technology in order to diagnose and treat disease. Radiology can be divided into diagnostic and interventional radiology. Various types of imaging techniques include X-rays, CT scans, ultrasounds, MRI scans, and fluoroscopy. While diagnostic radiology makes use of imaging techniques to observe structures in the body, interventional radiology involves doctors using imaging techniques to guide medical procedures.
References
Choy, G., Khalilzadeh, O., Michalski, M., Do, S., Samir, A. E., Pianykh, O. S., ... & Dreyer, K. J. (2018). Current applications and future impact of machine learning in radiology. Radiology , 288 (2), 318-328.
Interventional Radiology. (2019). Retrieved from http://www.greensbororadiology.com/services/procedures/interventional-radiology/
