Have you ever wondered what it would be like if medical imaging such as X-rays, Ultrasound, MRIs, CT Scans, PET Scans, and the likes were not invented? Most diseases would most likely be discovered and diagnosed when they’re already in their advanced stages, especially those that show subtle or no symptoms at all, or those that have only been discovered by accident while diagnosing a different illness. In such cases, any treatment plan would either revolve just around palliative care or be an exercise in futility altogether.

However, with the advancement of technology in medical equipment, diseases and illnesses can now be detected even in their most innocuous stages, like in the case of cancer, contributing to a more favorable prognosis. Medical imaging centers have been instrumental in this achievement.

If you happen to reside in places like Syracuse, New York, where all of these services are available and affordable, your life expectancy would most likely be longer compared to others with limited healthcare access. If you’re looking for a reliable center yourself, click here.

But how does a particular medical imaging center help people in Syracuse? Let’s take a look.

Offers Safer Medical Procedures

As mentioned, with medical imaging, diagnosing or detecting diseases and illnesses has become a whole lot of safer with the elimination of exploratory procedures to be able to tell what’s wrong inside our body.

Exploratory procedures refer to performing invasive surgery to confirm an initial diagnosis based on symptoms and the results of laboratory examinations. This is performed when specific tests cannot conclusively identify the illness, its exact location, or the extent of the damage.

Presented below are some of the non-invasive medical procedures being offered by medical imaging centers. To be able to illustrate their purposes, we’ve also aligned them with the top 5 leading causes of death among Syracuse residents in 2017, according to the New York State Department of Health:

• Heart Disease – Echocardiography (2D or 3D Echo), Ultrasound, Cardiac PET Perfusion, Cardiac PET Sarcoid, Cardiac PET Viability, and Cardiac SPECT Perfusion
• Cancer – MRI and Ultrasound, Mammography, and Tomosynthesis (3D mammography)
• Chronic Lower Respiratory Diseases – X-ray, CT scan, and MRI
• Stroke – Noncontrast Computed Tomography, CT Angiogram, CT Perfusion, MRI, Magnetic Resonance Diffusion, MRI Perfusion, Magnetic Resonance Angiography, Transcranial Doppler (TCD), and Angiography
• Unintentional Injury – X-ray, MRI, and Computed Tomography Scan (CT or CAT Scan), and Bone Density Scan

A Cost-Effective Option

Compared to other diagnostic services, medical imaging tests can be more accurate, hence you don’t need to repeat the procedure within short intervals. And since these can detect what’s wrong inside your body early on, the prognosis is very good, thus, saving on potential costs for further treatment.

Encourages Technological Improvement

Medical imaging services have been a constant force in the field of medicine, and they are one of the significant factors that have transformed and enhanced the way medical services are being delivered all over the world. However, they are far from perfect—or at least not yet.

Every time a procedure presents a limitation, this motivates inventors to improve that procedure to be able to produce a result where there’s no more room for doubt. Due to the medical industry’s quest for excellence, medical imaging services continue to grow along with it.

Such is the case in the discovery of a new method for developing radioactive tracers. This is for medical imaging used in cancer diagnosis and other illnesses.

Prevents Diseases

Imaging services have been an essential aspect of the attainment of the health sectors’ objective to prevent prevalent diseases from progressing. With imaging, certain procedures have become less complicated through its guidance by targeting specific areas of the body without affecting the surrounding area and other organs.

Provides Job Opportunities

For residents, the various imaging centers within and around Syracuse, NY have been a favorable presence in terms of providing employment across the ranks in the medical field.

In fact, careers in imaging centers are so lucrative that there are already over 200,000 radiologic technologists across the United States as of May 2018. With the continuous establishment of various imaging centers in Syracuse, New York, potential rad-techs and ultrasound technicians don’t need to worry about being unemployed.

Final Thoughts

There could be plenty of surefire treatments for different illnesses you never thought were curable—whether they’re supposed to kill you softly, are downright fatal, or just detected too late. However, without proper diagnosis, these treatments can be pointless—and this is where medical imaging services come into the equation by offering safe, non-invasive procedures, early detection of diseases, even employment to those involved in the healthcare industry.