X-Rays

When in 1985 the German physicist Wilhem Conrad Rötgen discovered X-rays, those who claimed to sell glasses capable of seeing through clothing also appeared, many men bought them, on the other hand, women were also fooled when someone announced that they sold underwear anti X-rays, both products were sold by the thousands, and despite the fact that scientists claimed that this was false, men and women continued to deceive each other, humanity for some reason always preferred to listen to charlatans, the human being despite being the most smart is also the most gullible.

Much mystery and also some conspiracy has revolved around this issue, even today there are still those who claim that it is possible to see through clothing or take an X-ray with your smartphone, and yes, those applications have millions of views and some are paid with promises of all kinds.

What are X-rays?

A form of electromagnetic radiation similar to visible light, X-rays have more energy than ordinary light and can pass through most objects, including the body. X-rays in medicine are used to generate images of tissues and structures within the body.
One type of X-ray detector is photographic film, although there are many other types of detectors that are used to produce digital images. The x-ray images that result from this process are called radiographs.

How do medical X-rays work?

The patient is positioned in such a way that the part of the body to be examined is between a source and an X-ray detector, when the machine is turned on these rays travel through the body and are absorbed in variable amounts by the tissues of the According to its radiological density, the radiological density is determined both by the density and by the atomic number of the materials used for the images. For example, structures such as bones contain calcium, this has a higher atomic number than most tissues. Due to this property, bones quickly absorb X-rays and therefore produce a high contrast in the X-ray detector.

As a result, bone structure appears whiter than other tissues, while less dense tissues such as fat or muscle appear gray.

Applications of medical X-rays

It is mainly used for the diagnosis and treatment of diseases:

Diagnosis
An X-ray radiography is capable of detecting broken bones, certain tumors, some types of injuries, calcifications, foreign objects, dental problems, etc.

Mammography:
An X-ray of the breast used for the detection and diagnosis of cancer, tumors tend to appear as masses of regular or irregular shape slightly brighter than the background on the X-ray, a mammogram can also detect microcalcifications (calcium particles) These are visible as very bright spots, they are generally benign, microcalcifications can sometimes indicate the presence of a type of cancer.

Fluoroscopy:
It uses X-rays and a fluorescent screen to obtain real-time images of movement within the body or to see diagnostic processes, fluoroscopy is used for example to see the movement of the heartbeat, organs and blood vessels, this technology is used also with a radiographic contrast medium to guide an internally threaded catheter during a cardiac angioplasty, which is a minimally invasive procedure to open the clogged arteries that supply blood to the heart.

CT (computed tomography):
It combines traditional X-ray technology with computerized processing to generate a series of cross-sectional images of the body, which can then be combined to form a three-dimensional X-ray image. CT images are more detailed than plain X-rays and offer patients physicians the ability to view structures within the body from various angles.

Risks
X-rays for medical use have increased our ability to detect illness or injury early enough that a medical problem can be managed, treated, or cured. When done properly and early, these procedures can improve health and can even save a person’s life.
However, X-rays also produce 0.62mSv ionizing radiation that can damage living tissues, the risk increases depending on the amount of exposure accumulated throughout life.

The most significant risks are:

• A slight increase in the chance that a person exposed to X-rays will develop cancer in their lifetime.
• Skin burns and cataracts, but only at extremely high levels of radiation exposure. The risk of developing cancer from exposure is generally small and depends on at least three factors.

·The amount of radiation dose.

·Age at the time of exposure.

·The sex of the exposed person.

The lifetime cancer risk increases the higher the dose per exam (including repetitions) and the greater the number of X-ray examinations a patient undergoes, the higher the lifetime cancer risk for a patient who received X-rays. at a younger age than for those who receive them at an older age.

Women have a slightly higher lifetime risk than men of developing radiation-related cancer after receiving the same exposures at the same ages.
Children have a higher life expectancy and therefore have a relatively higher risk of developing cancer than adults.

You can reduce the risk of radiation and contribute to the success of your exam or procedure by taking the following steps:

• Keep a “medical x-ray history” with the names of your radiological exams or procedures, the dates and places where they were performed, and the physicians who referred you for those exams.
• Inform your current healthcare providers about your medical x-ray history.
• Ask your healthcare provider whether or not alternatives to X-rays would allow you to make a good evaluation or provide appropriate treatment for your medical situation.
• Provide interpreting physicians and referring physicians with recent X-ray images and radiology reports.
• Inform radiologists in advance if you are pregnant or think you may be.