An x-ray or radiograph is a painless exam using radiation to see inside the body. Patients normally lie on a table with the equipment passing over their body for the procedure.  General x-ray is used to view the chest, bones and spine, skull and upper and lower gastrointestinal tract.  Barium enemas use fluoroscopy, x-ray in motion, to check the bowels.  Other specialty x-ray includes arthrography, bone densitometry, hysteroalpingography, intravenous pyelogram (IVP).  mammography, myelography and stereotactic breast biopsy.   

An x-ray image is produced when a site on the body is exposed to a small dosage of ionizing radiation.  The x-ray machine, which is positioned over the body, delivers a small burst of radiation that passes through the body. The image or images are captured digitally so that a radiologist can look for abnormalities.

The American Lung Association reports that lung disease is the third cause of death in the United States, responsible for one in seven deaths.  More than 35 million Americans have been diagnosed with a chronic lung disease that can often be diagnosed or ruled out with a chest x-ray.  Moreover, lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer deaths in both men and women.  It results in more deaths than the three most common cancers – colon, breast and prostate – combined.

The chest x-ray is the best initial evaluation of the lungs, and if needed, follow-up studies, such as CT, can further detect disease. The chest x-ray is the most common general diagnostic exam ordered in radiology. It is especially helpful for patients who present with shortness of breath, a persistent cough, chest pain or injury and fever. The exam can help diagnose:

• Pneumonia
• Heart failure or other heart abnormalities
• Emphysema
• Lung Cancer
• Other medical conditions affecting the lungs

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X-rays are helpful in looking closely at the bones in the hand, wrist, arm, foot, ankle, knee, leg and spine.  Most often physicians order an exam of an area to check for a fracture or abnormality in the joint.  X-rays are also helpful to see if a fracture has healed properly.  Other uses include:

• Checking for build up of fluid in the joint surrounding the bone
• Directing spinal repairs, joint replacement and fracture reductions
• Diagnosing arthritis and osteoporosis through a special study called bone densitometry
• Assisting in the detection of cancer
• Locating foreign objects that may have been swallowed
• Evaluating change in bone

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An upper gastrointestinal (GI) tract study is an x-ray examination of the pharynx, esophagus, stomach and first part of the small intestine or duodenum.  The procedure is performed using fluoroscopy (x-ray in motion) after the patient has drunk barium, a contrast agent that helps illuminate the gastrointestinal tract.  The radiologist is able to view and assess the anatomy and function of the pharynx, esophagus, stomach and the duodenum.

There is also an x-ray examination, called a barium swallow that evaluates only the pharynx and esophagus.

In addition to drinking barium, some patients are also given baking-soda crystals to further improve the images. This procedure is called an air-contrast or double-contrast upper GI.

A physician may order an upper GI exam to check for:  

• Ulcers
• Tumors
• Inflammation of the esophagus, stomach and duodenum
• Hiatal hernias
• Scarring
• Blockages
• Abnormalities of the muscular wall of gastrointestinal tissues

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The procedure can also detect:

• Difficulty swallowing
• Chest and abdominal pain
• Reflux, a backward flow of partially digested food and digestive juices
• Unexplained vomiting
• Severe indigestion
• Blood in the stool, an indication of internal bleeding

A lower gastrointestinal (GI) tract study examines the large intestine or colon.  The test looks at the right or ascending colon, the transverse colon, the left or descending colon and the rectum. The appendix and a portion of the small intestine may also be seen during the procedure.

The radiologist may able to diagnose ulcers, benign tumors or polyps, cancer or other intestinal disorders.   

The procedure is helpful in detecting:

• Chronic diarrhea
• Blood in stools
• Constipation
• Irritable bowel syndrome
• Unexplained weight loss
• A change in bowel habits
• Suspected blood loss.
• Inflammatory bowel diseases, including Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis

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