Aa
misread x-ray
how can a radiologist misread an x-ray?
The issue of gas in the bowel, as brought up by doctornee, can also create difficulties.
The hospital staff know this, but remember that timely information is necessary, because x-rays are often requested as a means of differential diagnosis of life-threatening injuries.
Hospitals generally require an x-ray of the chest, but feel free to refuse this if you have come in for hospitalization for a broken foot, for example. While one should not fear taking an x-ray for any reasonable purpose, there is no "safe" threshold for radiation exposure. Do not have an x-ray taken by a chiropractor. The x-ray machines in these offices are usually purxchased second-hand and are out of calibration, which means they provide more radiation than is necessary.
Always ask for a lead blanket to cover your genitalia. There is considerable "spread" from the beam. As an experiment, I once taped a penny to a hundred dental x-rays and placed them in various places around an x-ray room. At the end of a month I developed them all and in every case there was evidence of an exposure.
Most hospitals in the United States will not give the patient the original x-rays. Nor do they keep them for seven years. The x-rays contain silver, which is reclaimed at periodic intervals by destroying the films for salvage.
Thus, it behooves a patient to get copies of his x-ray at the earliest opportunity.
When an x-ray is copies, it loses some resolution.
With the advent of 10 megapixil digital cameras, an x-ray can be placed on a flourescent screen and photographed. Many hositals will allow you to do that. If you do, remember that there are illumination switches behind the film which may have two to four light settings.
If you ask a tech to make a copy, a small gift is in order. Nothing expensive. A six pack of cold soda is appropriate in summer. Some hot soup or a pizza in winter. This will insure you get the best copy possible.
Everybody has a funny x-ray story.
We had a gunshot in the ER once, that unfortunately expired. The ER physician requested x-rays of the cadaver. Being in a playful mood, and going on vacation, and because I handload ammunition, I had a few extra squished up 9mm bullets, which I slipped in the body cavity before the x-ray (removing them therafter).
I understand when they performed the autopsy they cut up every square centimeter of the body to find the "evidence". The district attorney was not amused.
The hospital staff know this, but remember that timely information is necessary, because x-rays are often requested as a means of differential diagnosis of life-threatening injuries.
Hospitals generally require an x-ray of the chest, but feel free to refuse this if you have come in for hospitalization for a broken foot, for example. While one should not fear taking an x-ray for any reasonable purpose, there is no "safe" threshold for radiation exposure. Do not have an x-ray taken by a chiropractor. The x-ray machines in these offices are usually purxchased second-hand and are out of calibration, which means they provide more radiation than is necessary.
Always ask for a lead blanket to cover your genitalia. There is considerable "spread" from the beam. As an experiment, I once taped a penny to a hundred dental x-rays and placed them in various places around an x-ray room. At the end of a month I developed them all and in every case there was evidence of an exposure.
Most hospitals in the United States will not give the patient the original x-rays. Nor do they keep them for seven years. The x-rays contain silver, which is reclaimed at periodic intervals by destroying the films for salvage.
Thus, it behooves a patient to get copies of his x-ray at the earliest opportunity.
When an x-ray is copies, it loses some resolution.
With the advent of 10 megapixil digital cameras, an x-ray can be placed on a flourescent screen and photographed. Many hositals will allow you to do that. If you do, remember that there are illumination switches behind the film which may have two to four light settings.
If you ask a tech to make a copy, a small gift is in order. Nothing expensive. A six pack of cold soda is appropriate in summer. Some hot soup or a pizza in winter. This will insure you get the best copy possible.
Everybody has a funny x-ray story.
We had a gunshot in the ER once, that unfortunately expired. The ER physician requested x-rays of the cadaver. Being in a playful mood, and going on vacation, and because I handload ammunition, I had a few extra squished up 9mm bullets, which I slipped in the body cavity before the x-ray (removing them therafter).
I understand when they performed the autopsy they cut up every square centimeter of the body to find the "evidence". The district attorney was not amused.
MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL
Hi
Welcome to the MedHelp forum!
An X-ray film can be hazy especially abdominal X-rays when there is too much gas in bowel. Other bone X-ray films too can be hazy due to poor developing procedure, if the person moves slightly while the X-ray film was shot, or if there is improper angle.
Sometimes a hairline fracture or a minimal dislocation can be missed.
A more precise answer can only be given if there is more information available.
Hope this helps. Please let me know if there is any thing else and do keep me posted. Take care!
Welcome to the MedHelp forum!
An X-ray film can be hazy especially abdominal X-rays when there is too much gas in bowel. Other bone X-ray films too can be hazy due to poor developing procedure, if the person moves slightly while the X-ray film was shot, or if there is improper angle.
Sometimes a hairline fracture or a minimal dislocation can be missed.
A more precise answer can only be given if there is more information available.
Hope this helps. Please let me know if there is any thing else and do keep me posted. Take care!
There are many unanswered questions in your post.
First of all x-rays are distorted by their nature. They are not 1:1 in scale. The x-ray beam sprays out like a triangle, the rays becoming wider the further apart from the patient. This means, when reading an image that the exact size of something can be difficult to determine. Imagine placing a penny coin on a patient's chest and another coin on his back. When an x-ray is taken the coins will have two different diameters.
Secondly, the technique used by the technician may vary considerably. The technique has a lot to do with the clarity of the image. Also, many of them don't know what they are doing. Because of a reluctance to expose a patient to additional radiation, the tech may simply avoid taking another shot, even when he knows he has used improper technique.
The development process can cause distortions. X-rays are essentially a photographic process. This means as the chemicals in the developing machine are used up, the time in the developer must increase. Many technicians don't do this.
Furthermore, the temperature in the development bath must remain constant. In one major hospital the director is on a "save-the-earth-through-saving-electricity" kick. Staff are responsible for shutting all equipment off when not in use. The x-rays techs have to shut offf the developing machine when not developing x-rays. Hmmm. Unfortunately there is both a heating and cooling element that keeps the chemicals at precisely the right temperature. When the machine is shut off and on unnecesarily, the development process is less than optimal and the image is poor.
Then there is the big private hospital I know that "saves" money by telling the x-ray techs to use the developing solution for a longer period than is optimal. This ends up causing a few thousand additional x-rays exposures every year, but what the heck. The comptroller has a smaller bill for developing chemicals.
X-rays have very short wavelengths and the image can be distorted by vibration. An image from a portable machine is always worse than an image from a fixed installation.
By their nature, x-rays show some things very clearly, and other things not so clearly. Often it involves a judgemental call, and several opinions. Reading an x-ray is as much of an art as a science.
First of all x-rays are distorted by their nature. They are not 1:1 in scale. The x-ray beam sprays out like a triangle, the rays becoming wider the further apart from the patient. This means, when reading an image that the exact size of something can be difficult to determine. Imagine placing a penny coin on a patient's chest and another coin on his back. When an x-ray is taken the coins will have two different diameters.
Secondly, the technique used by the technician may vary considerably. The technique has a lot to do with the clarity of the image. Also, many of them don't know what they are doing. Because of a reluctance to expose a patient to additional radiation, the tech may simply avoid taking another shot, even when he knows he has used improper technique.
The development process can cause distortions. X-rays are essentially a photographic process. This means as the chemicals in the developing machine are used up, the time in the developer must increase. Many technicians don't do this.
Furthermore, the temperature in the development bath must remain constant. In one major hospital the director is on a "save-the-earth-through-saving-electricity" kick. Staff are responsible for shutting all equipment off when not in use. The x-rays techs have to shut offf the developing machine when not developing x-rays. Hmmm. Unfortunately there is both a heating and cooling element that keeps the chemicals at precisely the right temperature. When the machine is shut off and on unnecesarily, the development process is less than optimal and the image is poor.
Then there is the big private hospital I know that "saves" money by telling the x-ray techs to use the developing solution for a longer period than is optimal. This ends up causing a few thousand additional x-rays exposures every year, but what the heck. The comptroller has a smaller bill for developing chemicals.
X-rays have very short wavelengths and the image can be distorted by vibration. An image from a portable machine is always worse than an image from a fixed installation.
By their nature, x-rays show some things very clearly, and other things not so clearly. Often it involves a judgemental call, and several opinions. Reading an x-ray is as much of an art as a science.
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