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Results
By Mayo Clinic staffX-rays penetrate body structures and tissue in different ways. Bone is very dense and blocks much of the radiation, so the image of bone on the film appears white. Your heart also blocks some of the radiation and so appears as a lighter area on the film. Lungs are filled with air, so they block little of the radiation, creating a dark image.
A radiologist — a doctor trained in interpretation of X-rays and other imaging exams — analyzes the images, looking for clues that may suggest if you have heart failure, fluid around your heart, cancer, pneumonia or other lung problems, or other conditions.
Your doctor will discuss the results with you as well as what treatments or other tests or procedures may be necessary.
- Mettler FA. Chest. In: Mettler FA. Essentials of Radiology. 2nd ed. Philadelphia, Pa.: Saunders Elsevier; 2005. http://www.mdconsult.com/books/about.do?about=true&eid=4-u1.0-B0-7216-0527-3..50006-8&isbn=0-7216-0527-3&uniqId=239558037-3. Accessed April 14, 2011.
- Chest X-ray (chest radiography). Radiological Society of North America. http://www.radiologyinfo.org/en/info.cfm?PG=chestrad. Accessed April 19, 2011.
- Chiles C, et al. Radiology of the chest. In: Chen MY, et al. Basic Radiology. 2nd ed. New York, N.Y.: The McGraw-Hill Companies; 2011. http://www.accessmedicine.com/content.aspx?aID=6668687. Accessed April 14, 2011.
- Radiation exposure in X-ray and CT examinations. Radiological Society of North America. http://www.radiologyinfo.org/en/safety/index.cfm?pg=sfty_xray. Accessed April 19, 2011.
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