This innovative technology has several distinct clinical advantages, including:
Please be aware that most CT scans require an appointment. Please call us to arrange an appointment.
What to bring:
It is important to inform your Doctor and the Gympie Radiology Staff if:
Please tell us if you are pregnant or breastfeeding.
Most CT examinations require preparation including fasting and being well hydrated. Our staff will make you aware of all preparation when booking your appointment.
CT scans are useful for angiograms, coronary arteries, brain/sinus, spine, heart, chest and abdomen examinations.
Every day adults with no symptoms of heart disease fall victim to the “silent killer”. With this new technology your GP or specialist can request a CT scan of the heart and chest that will give you a measure of your heart health before any symptoms such as chest pain or shortness of breath occur. Consider it a one-stop heart check-up with an analysis of the coronary arteries, valves, ventricular analysis, myocardial mass, plaque morphology and lung parenchyma. Prior to 64 detector CT technology, assessment of the coronary arteries was only available by inserting a catheter into a leg artery, which generally involves day admission to hospital.
CT Colonography is a new minimally invasive test in screening for colon cancer. It is an excellent alternative for patients who have clinical factors that increase the risk of complications from colonoscopy. No sedation or analgesia is required. CT colonography provides detailed 2D and 3D images of the colon, and can identify polyps as small as 5mm in size, with much greater accuracy than a conventional barium enema.
On arrival you may be asked to fill out an iodine contrast consent form. You may be provided with a gown to wear instead of your own clothes. You will be asked to remove:
All metal objects in the region of interest including:
In the imaging room, you will be helped onto a padded table which will move during the study to position you for the pictures. Each study normally takes only 5 – 10 seconds. As you are moved through the CT scanner, an X-ray tube and detectors rotate around your body.
During the examination you may hear humming or clicking sounds from the CT machine. The table moves to position you for the images. Your job during the examination is simply to relax and not move.
Our equipment utilises the latest radiation reduction techniques and the risks at these exposure levels are thought to be very small and outweighed by the information obtained by performing the scan. TwinBeam captures high-quality dual-energy images in one scan, reducing scan time and patient exposure. This means the system provides the best image quality at the lowest possible dose.
The images obtained are digitally recorded. At Gympie Radiology our highly trained and qualified radiologists interpret the images and provide a report for your doctor and/or referring health care provider usually within 24 hours, although depending on the complexity of the scan this may take a little longer.
You will need to make a follow up appointment to discuss the results with your referring practitioner. Your doctor can access your report and images electronically via a secure portal and you will be able to access your images via our patient portal.
Please note our adjusted hours over the Easter period:
Good Friday (April 18): Closed
Easter Saturday (April 19) Closed
Easter Sunday (April 20): Closed
Easter Monday (April 21): Closed
Normal hours resume from Tuesday, 22 April.
Wishing you and your family a safe and joyful Easter!
