Ct Scan Machine 

Ct Scan Machine: A Computerized Tomography Scan
 

With the help of a computer, a computerized tomography (CT) scan can produce cross-sectional photographs (slices) of the bones, blood arteries, and soft tissues within your body from a sequence of X-ray pictures from various angles around your body. Compared to traditional X-rays, CT scan images show more information.

In conventional X-ray equipment, the tube used to direct the radiation to its intended target is stationary. Varying tissues absorb X-rays at different rates as they pass through the body. Tissues with a higher density seem whiter than those with a lower density against the film's dark background. Photographs taken with an X-ray machine are just two dimensions.

In a CT scan, the patient lies inside a doughnut-shaped tube that spins 360 degrees to expose them to X-rays from every angle. This information can be used to create a 3D model of your body's interior.

A contrast agent may be used during your scan. A contrast agent, often known as a dye, is used to enhance photographs by drawing attention to certain details. Depending on the type of CT scan and the reason for the scan, your healthcare professional may have you drink a specific liquid containing the contrast agent, give you an IV injection containing the contrast, or both. In the first few hours after receiving the contrast agent, your urine will include a large volume, but over the next 24 hours, the volume will decrease.

What is a CT Scan Machine?
 

X-ray computed tomography (CT) scanners take the form of huge, oblong machines with a narrow passageway in the middle. In this tiny passage, you'll lie on a table that can be slid in and out. The x-ray tube and electronic x-ray detectors are mounted on opposite sides of a gantry that revolves around you.

Images from a computed tomography (CT) scanner can be reconstructed in several dimensions. It's capable of producing 3D images as well. These photos can be viewed by your doctor on a computer screen, printed using film or a 3D printer, or saved to a CD, DVD, or external hard drive.

When compared to conventional x-rays, CT scans of the body's organs, bones, soft tissue, and blood vessels reveal more information. This is especially true for the cardiovascular system and other softer tissues.

Radiologists are able to more accurately diagnose conditions including cancer, cardiovascular disease, infectious disease, appendicitis, trauma, and musculoskeletal diseases thanks to the CT scans they make and interpret using specialized technology and knowledge.

Multiple X-ray images are combined into one detailed picture in a computerized axial tomography (CAT) and computerized tomography (CT) scan.

The X-ray detector in a CT scanner can distinguish hundreds of densities. It has the capability to detect tissues inside a solid organ.

In response to this information, a computer constructs a three-dimensional cross-sectional image of the bodily component in question and presents it on the screen.

A CT scan may be recommended by your doctor if:

• Muscle and bone problems, like bone cancer and fractures, need to be identified and treated.
• Determine the precise spot where a tumor, infection, or clot is located
• Direct medical interventions include in-depth biopsies, invasive surgeries, and radiation treatments
• Cancer, cardiovascular disease, pulmonary nodules, and hepatic tumors can all be detected and monitored in this way.
• Check the efficacy of medicines you're using, like those for cancer.
• Check for internal bleeding and injuries

The Different Types of Ct Scan Machines
 

1. Filter

Like in ordinary film radiography, it is positioned between the x-ray source and the patient.

It filters out soft x-rays, which don't help create an image but do increase the patient's exposure to radiation.

By filtering out the weaker x-rays, we are able to produce a more "monochromatic" beam. To recreate an image, all you need is a monochromatic beam with a single energy.

Some scanners utilize a "bow-tie" or similarly shaped filter to redirect the beam. There is less attenuation of the x-ray beam along the body's peripheral regions since they are thinner than the body's central region. A shaped filter can adjust for this by decreasing the intensity of the beam's sides relative to its center. These CT scan machine filters are available in a wide variety of sizes and shapes to accommodate any area of the body that may be photographed. 

2. Collimator

A Collimator is positioned in between the filter and the person receiving treatment.

• Reduces the patient's exposure to radiation
• and prevents stray light from reaching the edges of a selected slice
   

3. Detector Array 

Early scanners could only scan a single layer at a time since they only had room for one row of detectors. The detector rows in modern scanners range from 8 to 64, and all are multi-slice. One thousand to two thousand detectors make up a typical detector row.

Here are the two basic types of Detector Array:

• Solid State Detector SSD: The x-rays are transformed into visible light by a solid scintillator layer. Next, the photodiode takes the incoming light and turns it into an electronic current.
• Ionization Chamber detector: High-atomic-number gases (Krypton/Xenon) are contained in a single container that is then partitioned into individual detectors using tungsten septae. Due to their incompatibility with multislice scanners, ionization chambers have been mostly phased out in favor of more modern, reliable solid-state detectors.

4. Gantry

The CT scanner gantry may be continuously rotated thanks to a slide ring. By making contact with the stationary ring, brushes on the revolving gantry are able to receive electricity and send a signal to the computer. The duration of each rotation ranges from 0.25 seconds to 3 seconds.

How does a CT Scan Machine work?
 

After getting the patient ready and in the correct position on the scanning table, the technologist will head into the control room and initiate the scan utilizing the control computer workstation. Many frequent scans (such as those of the belly and pelvis, chest, and head) are already included in the computer's database, and some even allow for user-specific scan protocols to be entered.

 The patient listens to the technologist's instructions for breath holds and body alignment through an intercom system as they are given before each scan. 

The machine in charge of the scan will automatically shift the patient table to the optimal position for the scan. Although the actual machine scanning process may only take a few minutes, getting the patient ready and into position can add another twenty or thirty minutes to the exam.

Following the conclusion of the examination, the technician will use the computer workstation to process the image data. Depending on the machine setup, images are either transferred to a computer diskette or sent via a digital image management system (picture archiving and communication system) for interpretation on a viewing monitor, or they are sent to an x-ray film processor or laser imager to print an as hard copy and taken to a reading room.

The radiology technologist must check the acquired images to ensure they are of high enough diagnostic quality before the patient is taken off the table. If the patient shifts their position during the scan, or if imaging structures are in motion, motion artifacts, such as streaks, blurring, or other inconsistencies, may appear (e.g., heart, lungs). 

Motion artifacts can be minimized by decreasing the slice width of the collected picture, shifting when the contrast material is injected, and decreasing the amount of time the patient holds their breath.

It is the responsibility of the radiologic technologist to select a scanning protocol that balances image quality with radiation exposure. Radiation exposure from a CT scan machine is typically comparable to that from natural sources over the course of a year. Radiation exposure from a CT scan machine is comparable to that of a standard x-ray technique, albeit somewhat higher.

It is of particular concern for pediatric children as newer multi-line scanners may produce a much higher radiation exposure compared to older single-slice spiral scanners.