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Chest X-Ray
About this test
A chest
X-ray is a picture of the chest that shows your
heart 
,
lungs , airway, blood vessels, and
lymph nodes. A chest X-ray also shows the bones of
your spine and chest, including your
breastbone ,
ribs ,
collarbone , and the upper part of your
spine . A chest X-ray is the most common imaging test
or X-ray used to find problems inside the chest.
A chest X-ray can help find some problems with the organs and structures inside the chest. Usually two pictures are taken, one from the back of the chest and another from the side. In an emergency when only one X-ray picture is taken, a front view is usually done. Doctors may not always get the information they need from a chest X-ray to find the cause of a problem. If the results from a chest X-ray are not normal or do not give enough information about the chest problem, more specific X-rays or other tests may be done, such as a computed tomography (CT) scan, an ultrasound, an echocardiogram, or an MRI scan.
| By: | Healthwise Staff | Last Revised: July 13, 2010 |
| Medical Review: | Kathleen Romito, MD - Family Medicine Howard Schaff, MD - Diagnostic Radiology | |
© 1995-2011 Healthwise, Incorporated. Healthwise, Healthwise for every health decision, and the Healthwise logo are trademarks of Healthwise, Incorporated. This information does not replace the advice of a doctor. Healthwise, Incorporated disclaims any warranty or liability for your use of this information. Your use of this information means that you agree to the Terms of Use. How this information was developed to help you make better health decisions.
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