Articles
Articles are a collaborative effort to provide a single canonical page on all topics relevant to the practice of radiology. As such, articles are written and continuously improved upon by countless contributing members. Our dedicated editors oversee each edit for accuracy and style. Find out more about articles.
More than 200 results
Article
Lumbar spine (lateral view)
The lumbar spine lateral view images the lumbar spine which generally consists of five vertebrae (see: lumbosacral transitional vertebra).
Indications
This projection shows an orthogonal view of the AP/PA view and is utilized in many imaging contexts including trauma, postoperatively, and for ...
Article
Contrast phases
Contrast phases are terms used to describe different stages of contrast enhancement to blood vessels, following the introduction of a pressure injected intravenous (IV) contrast agent such as iodine in CT.
Typical phases (time from injection) include:
early arterial phase
15-25 seconds pos...
Article
Thumb series
The thumb series is comprised of a posteroanterior, oblique, and lateral projection. The posteroanterior projection is interchangeably performed anterioposter or posteroanterior depending on mobility. It examines in detail the first metacarpal and its articulations. Thumbs have a vital impact in...
Article
Orbitomeatal line
The orbitomeatal line, also known as the canthomeatal line, was the traditional axial plane used for CT of the brain. It was easily identified on the inspection of the patient's head when tilting the gantry or patient's head to achieve a standard axial plane.
The orbitomeatal line was defined ...
Article
Early arterial phase
The early arterial phase, also known as the early systemic arterial phase, is a contrast-enhanced CT or MRI series, in which the contrast (e.g. iodinated or gadolinium) is still in the arteries and has not reached the organs and other soft tissues.
Technique
The acquisition time depends on the...
Article
Late arterial phase
The late arterial phase, also known as the corticomedullary phase or early venous portal phase, is a contrast-enhanced CT or MRI series, in which there is an optimal enhancement of structures that get their blood supply directly from the arterial system.
The standard characteristics for this ph...
Article
Flat panel CT
Flat panel computed tomography (FPCT), otherwise, know as flat panel volume tomography are multidetector computed tomography scanners that utilize a large area detector rather than a fixed array of detectors 1,3.
Flat panels have a significantly wider z-axis area coverage that can cover larger ...
Article
Knee (AP view)
The knee anteroposterior view is a standard projection to assess the knee joint, distal femur, proximal tibia and fibula and the patella.
Indications
This view demonstrates the distal femur and proximal tibia/fibula in their natural anatomical position allowing for assessment of suspected disl...
Article
Spine radiography (pediatric)
Spine radiography involves plain film imaging of the cervical spine, thoracic spine and lumbar spine in pediatric patients. Depending on the patient's age, the difficulty of the examination will vary, often requiring a specialist-trained radiographer familiar with a variety of distraction and im...
Article
Pediatric skull (lateral view)
The lateral skull view for pediatrics is one of two views to examine the skull and nasal bones.
Indications
This projection demonstrates an overview of the entire skull and is useful in identifying fractures and foreign bodies in pediatric patients. This view also presents an orthogonal view t...
Article
Pediatric skull (PA view)
The posteroanterior skull view for pediatrics is one of two views to examine the skull and nasal bones. In neonatal imaging, it may be easier to perform this view anteroposteriorly.
Indications
This projection demonstrates an overview of the entire skull and is useful in identifying fractures ...
Article
Skull radiography (pediatric)
Skull radiography involves plain film imaging of skull and nasal bones in pediatric patients. Depending on the patient's age, the difficulty of the examination will vary, often requiring a specialist-trained radiographer familiar with a variety of distraction and immobilization techniques.
Ind...
Article
Signal-to-noise ratio (radiography)
Signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) is a generic term which, in radiology, is a measure of true signal (i.e. reflecting actual anatomy) to noise (e.g. random quantum mottle). A lower signal-to-noise ratio generally results in a grainy appearance to images.
In radiography, the signal-to-noise ratio, an...
Article
X-ray artifacts
X-ray artifacts can present in a variety of ways including abnormal shadows noted on a radiograph or degraded image quality, and have been produced by artificial means from hardware failure, operator error and software (post-processing) artifacts.
There are common and distinct artifacts for fi...
Article
Radiography curriculum
The radiography curriculum is one of our curriculum articles and aims to be a collection of articles that represent core radiographic knowledge. As radiography encompasses multiple modalities, its content is split into subsections based on the modality.
Definition
Topics pertaining to radiogra...
Article
General radiography curriculum
The general radiography section covers in detail the various clinical presentations that require specific plain radiographic investigation, the anatomy covered, and how it is displayed via the chosen view. It outlines standard and modified radiographic technique to accommodate for a wide range o...
Article
Mammography
Mammography is a dedicated radiographic technique for imaging the breast, and the resultant images are known as mammograms.
Types of mammography
In general terms, there are two types of mammography: screening and diagnostic.
Mammography differs significantly in many respects from the rest of ...
Article
Noise (CT)
Noise in computed tomography is an unwanted change in pixel values in an otherwise homogeneous image. Often noise is defined loosely as the grainy appearance on cross-sectional imaging; more often than not, this is quantum mottle.
Noise in CT is measured via the signal to noise ratio (SNR); co...
Article
Pediatric hip (frog leg lateral view)
The frog leg lateral view is a special pelvis radiograph to evaluate the hip. Some departments will perform this routinely instead of the AP pelvis view to reduce exposure and maintain high diagnostic accuracy 1.
Indications
The bilateral examination allows for better visualization of the hip...
Article
Pediatric finger (lateral view)
The lateral finger view for pediatrics is part of a two view series examining the distal metacarpal, distal, middle and proximal phalanges of the finger of interest. The patient position can vary depending on which finger is being imaged.
Indications
This projection is useful for diagnosing f...
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