Wilhelm Conrad Röntgen discovered the X-Ray in November 1895. And radiology has since evolved with newer technologies to CT scanners, C-arms, ultrasonography, mammography and MRI systems.

The forum closely watching this transition is the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA), a society of radiologists, medical physicists and medical professionals from across the globe. RSNA celebrates its 100th year later this month, an opportune time to reflect on radiology and its progress.

With newer technologies becoming available, radiology research has been striving to offer ever more --- to doctors and to patients. The focus on patient comfort has increased. Thus, equipment with ease of mobility were developed. The bore of the CT and MRI systems have been widened so that patients do not feel claustrophobic. Robotics led to the development of the C-arm for faster intervention and robotic X-Rays that require fewer movements by patients and faster scanning.

New challenges

With changing demographics, lifestyles changed and so did disease patterns. Cancers and heart disorders emerged the new challenge. According to World Health Statistics (2015), 24 per cent of deaths in India are due to ischemic heart diseases and 22 per cent due to stroke. The incidence of lung cancer in men and cervical cancer in women is rising by the year.

This has intensified focus on hi-resolution imaging so that the minutest lession in the body or a blockage in the heart is not missed.

The dark side of X-Ray is the risk of harm from radiation. Today, all radiology equipment work on the Alara --- or As Low As Reasonably Achievable --- radiation safety principle. It is possible to scan patients at the right dose without imparing the diagnosis. A CT scan of a heart can be done with as low as 0.44 mSv!. For comparison, the average annual natural radiation burden of an individual is approximately 2.4 mSv.

Speed and accuracy of scans are improving. It is possible to scan a heart in 0.6 seconds with highest accuracy. Faster the speed, lower the requirement of beta blockers that slow the pulse before scanning. Holding the Breath is becoming unnecessary in almost all radiological tests.

Melding of technologies has led to better diagnosis and often via just one equipment. For instance, technologies like molecular CT scanners and molecular MR systems.

Digitalisation has been a game-changer for radiologists. From going filmless to anytime access to clinical images, digitalisation has been a boon to cardiologists, orthopaedic surgeons and oncologists. The use of tablets, like iPads, by clinicians for complicated diagnosis is becoming the norm. It improves clinical workflow and accelerate the delivery of healthcare services.

Software, the key

Most impactful has been software development that provides fast and easy visualisation and partly automated processing of image data from all devices (CT, X-Ray, or MR). It enables early diagnosis and treatment decisions, for example, functional imaging analysis and real-time 3D applications.

Digitalisation and miniaturisation is the future of radiology and it’s started. Equipments are getting compact, wireless, handheld and easy to operate. Newer 3D and 4D applications are making images look like a real human organ. Implementation of Big Data will be the next wave.

The hundred years since the evolution of radiology have seen huge advances. What will come in the next 100 years?

(The writer is CEO of Siemens Healthcare, India. The views are personal)

Related Topics
comment COMMENT NOW