In 1942, the first fluoroscopy was performed at Lancaster General Hospital. A fluoroscopy shows a continuous X-ray image, much like an X-ray movie, allowing the image to be transmitted to a monitor. The continuous image enabled clinicians to see in detail the movement of a body part, or an instrument or a contrast agent, also called X-ray dye, as it moved through the body.
In 1977, LGH began using a $500,000 computerized axial tomography machine, or CAT scanner. A year later, the hospital’s nuclear medicine capabilities were enhanced by the addition of a $100,000 gamma ray camera to conduct bone scans.
Last year, the LG Health Radiology Department performed more than 447,000 procedures. In fiscal year 2018, the health system invested $11 million in new equipment. The enhancements included a 3D tomosynthesis machine for mammography, new X-ray machines, 3D C-arms that are used in surgery to provide high-resolution X-ray images in real time, and vehicles with portable X-ray and ultrasound equipment to provide patient care outside of LG Health facilities. Existing equipment was also used in new and different ways to aid in lung cancer screenings, stroke protocols and cardiac CT scanning.
To learn more about the history of LG Health, visit HistoryOfLGH.org.