Torax Radiography: Indications, Preparation, Procedure, Complications and Results

It is an imaging test that uses small amounts of radiation to produce images of the organs, tissues, and bones of the body.

Chest x-rays can also tell if you have fluid in your lungs or air that surrounds your lungs. When focused on the chest, it can help detect abnormalities or diseases of the airways, blood vessels, bones, heart, and lungs.

Your doctor may order a chest x-ray for various reasons, including to evaluate injuries resulting from an accident or to control the progression of a disease, such as cystic fibrosis.

You may also need a chest x-ray if you go to the emergency room with chest pain or have been involved in an accident that included force in your chest area.

A chest x-ray is an easy, quick, and practical test that has been useful for decades to help doctors see some of their most vital organs.

Indications

Your doctor may order a chest x-ray if you suspect that your symptoms have a connection to problems in your chest. Suspicious symptoms may include:

  • Chest pain.
  • Fever.
  • Persistent cough
  • Difficulty breathing.

These symptoms may be the result of the following conditions, which a chest x-ray can detect:

 

  • Broken ribs.
  • Emphysema (a long-term progressive lung condition that causes breathing difficulties).
  • Heart failure.
  • Lung cancer.
  • Pneumonia .
  • Pneumothorax (an accumulation of air in the space between your lungs and your chest wall).

Another use for a chest x-ray is to see the size and shape of your heart. Abnormalities in the size and shape of your soul can indicate problems with heart function.

Doctors sometimes use chest x-rays to monitor their progress after surgery in the chest area. Doctors can check that the implanted materials are in the right place and ensure no air leaks or fluid buildup.

How to prepare for a chest x-ray?

Chest radiographs require very little preparation from the person receiving them.

You should remove jewelry, eyeglasses, body piercing, or other metal. Tell your doctor if you have a surgically implanted device, such as a heart valve or a pacemaker.

Your doctor may opt for a chest x-ray if you have metal implants. Other scans, such as MRI scans, can be risky for people with metal in their bodies.

Before the x-ray, you will undress from the waist up and put on a hospital gown.

Process

The x-ray is produced in a particular room with a mobile X-ray camera attached to a large metal arm.

It will stand next to a “plate.” This plate may contain an X-ray film or a unique sensor that records the images on a computer. You will wear a lead apron to cover your genitals. This is because the sperm in men and the ovules in women could be damaged by radiation.

The X-ray technician will tell you how to stand and record your chest’s front and side views.

While taking the pictures, you will have to hold your breath so that your chest remains entirely still. If you move, the images may come out blurry.

As the radiation passes through your body and reaches the plate, the denser materials, like the bones and muscles of your heart, will appear white.

After the images have been captured, taking approximately 20 minutes, your part will be complete. You can put your clothes back on and dedicate yourself to your day.

What are the complications associated with a chest x-ray?

Doctors agree that exposure to the small amount of radiation produced during a radiograph is well worth it because of the diagnostic benefits provided by the test.

However, doctors do not recommend x-rays if you are pregnant. This is because radiation can harm your unborn baby. If you think you are pregnant, be sure to tell your doctor.

Results

A laboratory usually develops the images of a chest x-ray on large sheets of film. When viewed in an enlightened context, your doctor can look for various problems, from tumors to broken bones.

A radiologist also reviews the images and gives his interpretation to his doctor. Your doctor will discuss the results of your x-rays with you at a follow-up appointment.