Intro To Equipment

Intro To Equipment

RADIOGRAPHIC & IMAGING EQUIPMENT

• Equipment
• What is radiology?
• Radiology comes from two words
• Radio- meaning radiation
• -logos; means ‘science’ or ‘study of’
• Radiology is a branch of medicine that uses imaging
• technology to diagnose and guide treatment of diseases.
• The main branches of radiology include
• Diagnostic radiology (diagnose diseases)
• Interventional radiology (guide treatment)
• Nuclear medicine; makes use of small amounts
• of radioactive materials (radiopharmaceuticals)
• to examine organ function and structure. Radiotherapy
• Uses controlled doses of radiation to treat
• diseases, primarily cancer.
• Doctors that specialize in interpretation of medical images
• are called radiologists.
• What is radiography?
• Radiography comes from two words
• Radio- meaning radiation
• Graphy- means ‘to record’ or ‘take a
• picture’ or ‘create an image’
• Therefore;
• Radiography is the use of high energy radiation to create
• medical images of inside the human body.What is diagnostic radiography?
• Diagnosis; is the process of identifying a disease,
• condition or injury.
• Diagnostic radiography; is the process of creating medical

images of inside the human body for the purpose of identifying a disease, condition or injury. Health care professionals or technologists who deal with creating medical images are called radiographers.

• What is a radiograph?
• A radiograph is an image or picture produced on a film or
• sensitive plate after exposing patient to high energy
• radiation.
• A radiograph is the end product of radiography.

Medical Imaging Equipment

• There are several equipment used in medical imaging
• X-ray machine
• Dental x-ray machine
• Ultrasound
• CT scanner
• MRI
• Mammography
• Fluoroscopy

 Gamma Camera

• PET
• SPECT
• Each equipment uses a different technology to create

medical images.X-ray Machine

• An x-ray machine is a medical imaging device that uses xrays to create images of internal structures of the body.
• X-ray images are useful in assessing the skeletal system
• (bones) and even some soft tissues especially lungs.
• X-ray images are two dimensional (2D).Types of X-ray Machines
• There are three types of x-ray equipment based on their
• image acquiring systems.
• Conventional radiography
• makes use of screen/film imaging system.
• after exposure, a latent image is created on the
• film.
• the film is then processed chemically to produce a
• manifest image which can be interpreted by a
• physician.
• screen and film are placed in a cassette at a very
• close contact
• A conventional x-ray machine has the following
• components;
• X-ray tube; produces the x-rays
• X-ray table; used for positioning the patient.
• Film/Screen; interacts with x-rays to form an
• image. Control panel; permits the selection of
• exposure factors (mA, kV and time) and
• initiation of exposures
• High-voltage generator; modifies incoming
• voltage and current to provide x-ray tube with
• the power needed to produce an x-ray beam
• of desired peak-kilo-voltage (kVp) and current
• (mA).
• Components of high-voltage generator
• Computed radiography (CR)
• makes use of cassette based phosphor imaging
• plates (PSP) to create a digital image.
• a cassette containing a phosphor imaging plate is
• exposed then scanned by computerized system (a
• reader) to obtain a digital image.
• It is also a form of digital radiography due to
• production of a digital image.
• Direct Digital Radiography (DDR)
• Involves translating x-ray energy into electric signal that is in
• turn converted into digital data to form a digital image.
• This is achieved by the use of detectors.
• A digital x-ray machine has the following components;
• X-ray tube
• X-ray table
• Image receptor
• Control panel High-voltage generatorX-ray ImagesEquipment Preparation
• How do I prepare an x-ray machine for an
• investigation?
• (i) Wipe the x-ray table, the vertical Bucky and x-ray
• tube handles with antiseptic solution to avoid cross
• infection.
• (iii) Switch on the x-ray generator and the control
• console.
• (iv) Warm up the x-ray tube machine at the beginning of
• the day.
• (v) Enter patient details ready for exposure.Dental X-ray Machine
• This is an x-ray machine used by dentists to create
• medical images of teeth, jaws and other parts of the
• mouth to diagnose patient’s oral condition.
• There are two main types of dental x-rays;
• Intraoral; the film is put inside the mouth.
• Extraoral; the film is placed outside the mouth.
• Extraoral X-ray UnitsComponents of Dental X-ray Machine
• Tubehead; contains the x-ray tube which
• produces the x-rays.
• Control panel; permits the selection of
• exposure factors (mA, kV and time) and
• initiation of exposures
• Film; interacts with x-rays to form an image.
• Support arms; offers mechanical support to
• the tube head.Dental ImagesUltrasound Machine
• An ultrasound machine uses high frequency sound waves
• to create images of inside the body.
• Ultrasound frequencies in diagnostic radiology range from
• 2 megahertz (2 MHz) to approximately 15 MHz.
• The sound humans hear has a frequency range of 20
• hertz (20 Hz) to 20,000 Hz.  A healthcare professional or technologist who specializes

in ultrasound only is called a sonographer.Ultrasound Images

Equipment Preparation

• How do I prepare an ultrasound machine for an
• investigation?
• (i) Make sure an ultrasound probe to be used is
• connected to its port on the machine.
• (ii) Connect the ultrasound machine to the source of
• power if it is not battery charged.
• NB; It is best to connect the machine to the UPS

(Uninterruptible Power Supply) to avoid damage to the machine incase off power outage/cut.(iii) Switch on the ultrasound machine ready for use.CT SCAN

• The word CT stand for computed tomography.
• A CT scan uses x-rays to obtain detailed internal images
• of the body in form of slices/sections.
• A CT scan also produces 3 dimensional images.

Equipment Preparation

• How do I prepare a CT-scan machine for an
• investigation?
• (i) Wipe the CT table with antiseptic solution to avoid
• cross infection.
• (ii) Switch on the control console.
• (iii) Warm up the CT-scan machine at the beginning of
• the day.MRI
• MRI stands for magnetic resonance imaging.
• MRI is a machine which uses magnetic field and radio
• waves to create detailed images of organs and tissues

within the body.MR ImagesMammography

• Mammography is a radiographic equipment which uses xrays to detect diseases affecting the breasts.
• It is very useful in early detection of breast cancer.Fluoroscopy
• This is a machine which uses x-rays to create moving
• images of inside the body.
• A fluoroscope shows motion of internal structures and
• fluids.
• It is same as saying it is an ‘x-ray movie.’GAMMA CAMERA
• This is a radiographic equipment which detects high
• energy gamma radiation from the radioactive atoms in the
• patient’s body.
• It is the most common imaging device in nuclear

medicine. Images