1. Careers
1.1. Radiologist
1.1.1. Educational Requirments
1.1.1.1. 78% of radiologists have a doctorate, with the second most common being a bachelor's degree at 11%.
1.1.1.1.1. have a high school diploma or equivalent;
1.1.1.1.2. complete a bachelor's degree;
1.1.1.1.3. graduate from a medical school;
1.1.1.1.4. complete an internship;
1.1.1.1.5. pass a state licensing exam;
1.1.1.1.6. complete a residency program in radiology;
1.1.1.1.7. pass additional exams to become board certified; and
1.1.1.1.8. complete an optional specialization fellowship.
1.1.2. Daily Duties
1.1.2.1. The radiologist interprets the medical images created by MRIs, CT scans, X-rays, and ultrasounds and must know how to operate all types of machinery used to obtain medical images.
1.1.2.2. He or she also administers radioactive materials to the patient to obtain medical imaging.
1.1.3. Salary Range
1.1.3.1. Radiologists earn an average yearly salary of $200,890. Wages typically start from $60,280.
1.1.4. Experience Needed
1.1.4.1. While in medical school, you spend two years working as an intern in a hospital or clinic. As an intern, you rotate through different medical specialties. These include internal medicine, family medicine, obstetrics, oncology, and other hospital departments.
1.1.4.2. After medical school, you complete a residency program in radiology that lasts four to five years. Residents usually work in hospitals. The first year of your residence is a preliminary year, and remaining years will be focused on radiology.
1.1.4.3. During this time you'll become familiar with different types of imaging and radiology, interact with patients, and learn how to diagnose and treat all types of diseases.
1.1.4.4. After your residency, you'll take additional exams to become board certified. If you want to specialize in a specific type of radiology, you'll need an additional fellowship after residency. This takes one to two years.
1.2. Radiographer
1.2.1. Educational Requirments
1.2.1.1. Associates or Bachelor's degree
1.2.2. Daily Duties
1.2.2.1. perform diagnostic medical imaging using various procedures, including magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), fluoroscopy, mammography and computed tomography (CT).
1.2.2.2. responsible for protecting the patient, themselves and their co-workers from excessive radiation. They use radiation shields and other specialized equipment to limit the amount of radiation people are exposed to.
1.2.2.3. keeping records
1.2.2.4. maintaining equipment
1.2.2.5. preparing work schedules.
1.2.2.6. conduct treadmill stress tests, Holter monitoring and echocardiograms, along with other tests.
1.2.2.7. may perform invasive and non-invasive procedures
1.2.3. Experience Needed
1.2.3.1. internship, hospital experience, and on the job training
1.2.4. Salary Range
1.2.4.1. 20,000-70,000 a year depending on specialization
2. Conclusion Qs
2.1. A patient enters a hospital after hitting her head in a car accident. She is diagnosed with a fractured skull but has other symptoms that show she is suffering from brain damage. What technology should be used to confirm this diagnosis?
2.1.1. Because the brain (a soft tissue) is involved an MRI will be most affective at checking the brain for any issues. Used in combination with an x-ray to see the bone itself you can confirm this diagnosis easily.
2.2. Come up with a situation where it would be inappropriate to use an MRI scan as a diagnostic tool.
2.2.1. Checking a fracture, an MRI doesn't show hard tissue like bones so it wouldn't help the issue.
2.3. Explain why a combination of X-rays, CT scans, bone scans and MRI scans is used when diagnosing bone cancer.
2.3.1. X-rays show location of tumors, CT scan give the thickness and overall size of any tumors you may find for surgical intervention, bone scans can help evaluate how blood may be affected and the strength of the left over tissue, MRI to help see if the cancer has spread into the muscle, blood, etc.
3. Scans
3.1. Bone Density Scan
3.1.1. Technology
3.1.1.1. An injection of tracers is administered to the patient and allowed to circulate and be absorbed by the bones.
3.1.1.2. Once absorbed, the patient lies on a table while a machine passes a gamma camera over the body to record the pattern of tracer absorption by the bones.
3.1.1.3. Radiologists look for abnormal bone metabolism on the scan, areas that show up as darker or lighter where tracers have or have not accumulated.
3.1.2. What does the image show?
3.1.2.1. Produces two-dimensional images of the body.
3.1.2.2. Used to examine the skeleton to detect abnormalities.
3.1.3. How is it used?
3.1.3.1. A bone density test determines if you have osteoporosis — a disorder characterized by bones that are more fragile and more likely to break.
3.2. X-rays
3.2.1. Technology
3.2.1.1. X-rays are a form of electromagnetic radiation that is sent through the body.
3.2.1.1.1. X-ray is performed by a machine that sends individual X-ray particles, called photons, through the body.
3.2.2. What does the image show?
3.2.2.1. Structures that are dense, such as bone, will block most of the X-ray particles and appear white.
3.2.2.2. Metal and contrast media, a special dye used to highlight areas of the body, will appear white.
3.2.2.3. Structures containing air will appear black and muscle, fat, and fluid will appear gray.
3.2.2.4. Produces two-dimensional images.
3.2.2.5. Examines bones, teeth, lungs, breasts, heart, blood vessels, and the digestive tract.
3.2.3. How is it used?
3.2.3.1. The most familiar use of x-rays is checking for fractures (broken bones), but x-rays are also used in other ways.
3.2.3.2. For example, chest x-rays can spot pneumonia. Mammograms use x-rays to look for breast cancer.
3.3. CT Scan
3.3.1. Technology
3.3.1.1. A series of X-ray views taken from many different angles are combined to produce cross-sectional images of the bones and soft tissues inside your body.
3.3.2. What does the image show?
3.3.2.1. Produces cross-sectional images of the body.
3.3.2.2. Examines the chest, abdomen, pelvis, spine, and other skeletal structures.
3.3.3. How is it used?
3.3.3.1. Diagnose muscle and bone disorders, such as bone tumors and fractures
3.3.3.2. Pinpoint the location of a tumor, infection or blood clot
3.3.3.3. Guide procedures such as surgery, biopsy and radiation therapy
3.3.3.4. Detect and monitor diseases and conditions such as cancer, heart disease, lung nodules and liver masses
3.3.3.5. Monitor the effectiveness of certain treatments, such as cancer treatment
3.3.3.6. Detect internal injuries and internal bleeding
3.4. MRI Imaging
3.4.1. Technology
3.4.1.1. The machine scans the body by turning small magnets on and off.
3.4.1.2. Radio waves are sent into the body.
3.4.1.3. The machine then receives returning radio waves and uses a computer to create pictures of the part of the body being scanned.
3.4.2. What does the image show?
3.4.2.1. Produces cross-sectional images of the body.
3.4.2.2. Used to examine the brain, spine, joint, abdomen, blood vessels, and pelvis.
3.4.3. How is it used?
3.4.3.1. Health care professionals use MRI scans to diagnose a variety of conditions, from torn ligaments to tumors. MRIs are very useful for examining the brain and spinal cord.