Before the examination, all foreign bodies in the examination area, such as watches, jewellery, hair clips or underwired bras, are removed. Areas of the body that are particularly sensitive to radiation are protected by lead aprons. The patient is then brought into the correct position for the recordings by trained staff. In order to protect themselves from radiation exposure during work, the X-ray personnel are in a different room during the X-ray exposure. In order not to get "blurry" X-ray images, the patient should not move during the exposure and may have to hold their breath briefly.

After the examination

With digital X-rays, the radiologist can view the images on the computer immediately after they have been taken. The images no longer have to be elaborately developed.

The digital X-ray examination is mainly used to diagnose pathological changes in the lungs and diseases of the skeletal system. Before each X-ray is taken, a doctor specializing in X-ray diagnostics determines whether the examination is necessary.

In the past, a film sensitive to light was exposed with the help of X-rays and then developed. Digital X-rays are the modern advancement of conventional X-rays, in which a digital detector system is no longer exposed to film.

During the examination, X-rays are directed specifically at the respective body region. Other parts of the body are not directly irradiated. The X-rays penetrate the body region being examined and are attenuated to varying degrees by the various structures, such as organs and bones.

Only modern digital X-ray technology is used at our locations. In this process, a digital flat panel detector is exposed. As a result, radiation exposure can be reduced by around 40% compared to the original techniques with film screen systems, and the image quality is also better.

Less radiation exposure

A digital detector system registers the different levels of radiation arriving on the opposite side and converts the signals into an image on the computer. The sensitivity of such a system is much more sensitive than that of conventional X-ray systems. This enables a significant dose reduction.

Time-consuming film development is no longer necessary

Because film is no longer developed with digital X-rays, the images are available for assessment immediately after the examination. The chemical plants required for development are no longer necessary.

The affected body region is usually X-rayed from several directions. Through this examination in several projection planes, structures that overlap each other are shown better and can thus be assessed well.

A special form of digital X-ray examination is fluoroscopy, in which various movement processes in the body can be viewed directly on a screen.