DOTmed: Tell us about this purchase. St. Louis Children’s Hospital is the first pediatric hospital in Missouri to acquire FLASH CT scanner technology that will make scans safer for children.
While an X-ray can provide a great deal of diagnostic information, a CT scan offers far greater detail about internal organs and other structures. A CT uses X-rays to take cross-section pictures of the inside of the body in “slices”. The slices are then reconstructed into an image. That level of detail can significantly advance a child’s medical treatment. However, clinicians must weigh the diagnostic benefit of CT against the risk posed by radiation exposure.
DOTmed: Any final thoughts? While nationwide the statistics show an upward trend in the volume of CT scans performed on pediatric patients, the number of CT scans ordered at Children’s has decreased by half since 2005.
