Your body is an impressive machine, constantly working to keep you healthy and active. Some of these tasks may be more obvious, such as when you use your muscles or your heart beats faster. Others, however, are less noticeable — and impossible to see without the right tools.
Radiology allows your healthcare provider to see what’s going on inside your body. Using special medical imaging techniques, such as X-rays and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), radiologists create images to screen for, diagnose, and treat diseases and injuries that might otherwise go unnoticed.
At South Shore Hospital, our radiologists are experts in using these advanced, life-saving tools. By working closely with your referring provider, South Shore radiologists provide excellent radiology care to meet your needs.
Experienced Doctors
Complete primary care services, from routine check-ups and preventive care at five affiliated neighborhood clinics and affiliated physicians.
Friendly Staff
Excellent and personable physicians, nurses, and professional staff. Transportation Services for seniors and disabled patients at affiliated clinics and the hospital.
South Shore Hospital Radiology & Diagnostic Services
Whether you require screening, diagnosis, or treatment, our radiology services offer both excellence and convenience. Our specially trained radiologists use the most technologically-advanced tools to give you the care you need right in your neighborhood.
At South Shore, we provide your care team with accurate and refined results in a timely manner. Special archiving and digital imaging units allow for faster and more accurate diagnosing, including immediate transfer of images to physicians both within and beyond South Shore Hospital.
Below are some of the radiology and diagnostic services we offer at South Shore Hospital.
X-rays create pictures of the inside of your body. They use a very small amount of radiation (called electromagnetic waves) to create black and white images of parts of your body, such as your bones or lungs. These images are formed based on how much radiation they absorb. For instance, the calcium in your bones takes in the most amount of radiation, so they look white in an X-ray image. Air absorbs the least amount of radiation, so your lungs appear nearly black.
The amount of radiation used in an X-ray is similar to the amount you’re exposed to naturally in your environment over the course of 10 days.
X-rays are used to screen for and diagnose:
- Broken bones
- Certain health conditions, such as pneumonia
- Illnesses, such as breast cancer
At South Shore, we also use a tool called fluoroscopy, which is a type of X-ray that shows what’s happening inside your body in real-time. Where X-rays are more like pictures, fluoroscopy is more like a movie.
Fluoroscopy can help screen and diagnose problems in your cardiovascular (heart and blood vessels), digestive, and reproductive systems.
Roughly 1 in 8 women will develop breast cancer in her lifetime. What’s more, while white women are more likely to develop breast cancer, Black women are more likely to die from the disease.
Early detection is key in treating breast cancer successfully. Screening tests, such as mammograms, help identify and diagnose breast cancer early — before you even have symptoms.
At South Shore, we use mammograms to screen for and diagnose breast cancer. A mammogram is an X-ray picture of the breast. By using images created by mammograms, providers can discover breast cancer early — in some cases, up to 3 years before it can be felt.
Women ages 50 to 74 who have an average risk of breast cancer should get a mammogram every 2 years. Women ages 40 to 49 should talk to their healthcare provider about their individual risk in order to determine when and how often they should get a mammogram.
Ultrasounds help your healthcare provider see inside your body using sound waves to create images. Using a small probe (called a transducer) and a special gel, high-frequency sound waves travel from the probe, through the gel, and into your body. Then, sound waves bounce back into the probe, and a computer translates them into images.
Vascular ultrasounds look at your body’s circulatory system, including your arteries and veins. They can help identify blockages and blood clots, which can be dangerous and cause conditions such as heart attack or stroke.
However, if caught early using a vascular ultrasound or another tool, such as a blood test, your healthcare provider can begin treatment to avoid complications.
Why Choose South Shore for Radiology & Diagnostic Services
At South Shore Hospital, we offer radiology and diagnostics services to screen for, diagnose, and treat a wide range of conditions. By offering excellent diagnostic services in the convenient location of the South Shore neighborhood, we are dedicated to improving the health and wellness of all South Shore community members.
For more information or to schedule an appointment with South Shore Hospital Diagnostics & Radiology, call 773-356-5325.
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