In this document, I hope to give everyone an idea of the progress that was made in the field of Medical Imaging from early in 1963 to 1993. I picked those years because that's when I was involved in the industry. I will cover the events by taking the reader through the evolution of:
The end result of an X-ray study is to produce an image on a film. Because change is inevitable, producing an image on "film" is no longer the only avenue in today's computer oriented environment. But up to this point I felt it was necessary to show the progress of several related aspects of the imaging chain, that contributed to the production of an image. Each one of the advancements, in it's own way contributed to the "evolution" of the imaging making process.
Click on anyone of the above links to get a better idea of what went on with that particular technology.
I have not included any graphics, but intend to do so at a later date. This would help to illustrate some of the systems that I talk about. If anyone has a file cabinet full of GIF's on Medical Imaging Equipment, I would love to have some for use in this article. I would be happy to acknowledge the donation of a GIF image that is used, by so noting this in the article.
I am putting the following comments, illustrations, and what ever flows out of my mind in to writing the attached articles, so that a small segment of an exciting history won't be lost. Will this report be biased? Yes it probably will be because I am the one writing it. Am I going to insert or brag about some parts of this history that I think I am partially responsible for? Yes! Will there be questions or arguments, and out right accusations from some, that I don't know what I am talking about? Yes. Will some people say that I really didn't do some of the things that I say I did? You betcha! (Minnesota talk). Do I care? Yes I do care, but the people who read these comments should be advised that I am writing from my prospective, and not some one else's. Do I want criticism's and comments about my work? Yes, as long as they are constructive comments , correction's or addition's. I also expect those persons who will question this little part of history, to tell me what part they played in it. If I find they are right, or I am wrong about any thing I talk about, I will acknowledge and change that fact, and maybe even add their narration to this dissertation. Although I will do my best to correct spelling and word use, you will more than likely find miss-spellings, miss-used words, and poor paragraph construction in these articles. I am NOT an author by any stretch of the imagination. So be kind with your comments and help me correct these mistakes.
In the attachments that I have provided with this cover page, I have tried to give a very brief description of the minor and some times dramatic changes that took place, as the technology progressed. What the reader should understand is that these changes have lead to some of the most advanced diagnostic equipment and procedures the world has ever known. These advancements have been made by many people in many companies in countries too numerous to mention. The most exciting part of this is that even now, dramatic changes are taking place that affect each and every one of us.
Can you imagine an X-ray study today where the radiation exposure to the patient is probably more than 100 times less than the exposure value's of 20 or 30 years ago? What I am trying to convey to the reader is that all through the years the real intent of the inventing scientist's has been to not only make a profit for his or her company but to make it better for the patient who has to endure a medical procedure. When I use the term "inventing scientist", I really mean that person who had a vision about how to make something better. His or her idea/invention is usually built on by some other person or group of persons that through the fate of the Gods are assigned to carry on with the work. Some times those people take or get the credit for the idea/invention (even though they don't deserve the credit) thought of by that person that I call "the inventing scientist".
Even though I don't mention personal names in these articles, I am sure that if one of my friends that was working in this industry reads these articles, they would know who I was talking about. I am not sure but I think I could be open for some kind of legal action if I mentioned names of people that were involved. I know that many of the people I knew in the business, were "takers" and not "givers", in their efforts to get ahead. I most certainly would not mention their names, because they don't deserve the recognition.
Can you imagine an X-ray room of 30 years ago where it took 30 or more minutes just to get one (1) radiograph produced, so the radiologist could see what was happening? Do you realize that in some of today's X-ray rooms, the same procedure would take less than the time it takes to read the last 2 or 3 paragraphs of this page? That is what I call advancement!
I guess what I am trying to get across to the reader is that there are some really exciting things that took place in the field of Medical Imaging, that many in the world are not aware of and yet it affects every one of us in one way or another.
I hope this "Little Part" of a History lesson is accepted as I have intended it to be.
You can see my picture, and leave comments on my Home Page or you can e-mail me.
CHARLES EVERLING
Last updated on 9 APRIL 1998