A chest x ray is a painless, noninvasive test that
creates pictures of the structures inside your chest, such as your heart and
lungs. "Noninvasive" means that no surgery is done and no instruments are
inserted into your body.
This test is done to find the cause of symptoms such
as shortness of breath, chest pain, chronic cough (a cough that lasts a long
time), and fever.
Overview
X rays are electromagnetic waves. They use ionizing
radiation to create pictures of the inside of your body.
A chest x ray takes pictures of the inside of your
chest. The different tissues in your chest absorb different amounts of
radiation. Your ribs and spine are bony and absorb radiation well. They
normally appear light on a chest x ray. Your lungs, which are filled with air,
normally appear dark. A disease in the chest that changes how radiation is
absorbed also will appear on a chest x ray.
Chest X Ray
Figure A shows a cross-section of a
chest. Figure B shows an x-ray image of a chest. Roll your mouse over the terms
on right side of the x-ray image to highlight the internal structures of the
chest on both figures.
Chest x rays help doctors diagnose conditions such
as pneumonia,
heart
failure, lung cancer,
lung
tissue scarring, and
sarcoidosis
(sar-koy-DO-sis). Doctors also may use chest x rays to see how well treatments
for health problems are working. Also, doctors often use chest x rays before
surgery to look at the structures in the chest.
Chest x ray is the most common x-ray test used to
diagnose health problems.
Outlook
Chest x rays have few risks. The amount of radiation
used in a chest x ray is very small. Sometimes, a lead apron may be used to
protect certain parts of your body from the radiation.
A chest x ray gives out a radiation dose similar to
the amount of radiation you're naturally exposed to over 10 days. Chest x rays
use a smaller amount of radiation than other imaging tests.