• MRI, or Magnetic Resonance Imaging, uses a powerful magnetic field and radio waves to create high resolution, 3-Dimensional images of your anatomy. MRI does not rely on ionized radiation (like that used in CR, or X-ray), which makes for a safe testing experience. MRI relies on the water molecules in your body vibrating due to radio frequency energy, noise. MRI is a versatile tool that allows your physician to gain a much clearer perspective on your healthcare needs.

    During your MRI, we will place the area of concern in the center or our magnet bore. We use an "Open-Bore MRI" The bore is fully open at both ends. While imaging your body, the MRI unit will pass radio waves, much like those used by your favorite radio station, through your body. This process is painless and does no harm to you at all. You may feel some tingling or warmth in the area we are examining but nothing more. MRI units do create a lot of noise while in use, but you will be provided with something to suppress the noise. Most procedures will take less than 30 minutes.

    What To Expect Before Your Test

    We may need to contact you in the days leading up to your appointment in order to gain some medical history information. This interview is very important to us. It allows us to ensure your safety and to prepare for your test. Please disclose any information regarding your health.

    Day of Test

    Before entering the examination room, you will be asked to remove any electronic devices, anything made of metal*, or anything that has a magnetic strip from your person. Such things may include:

    Bra

    Wallet

    Belt

    Jewelry

    Cell Phone

    Credit Cards

    Driver's License

    Dental Work (Partial/Bridge)

    Hearing Aids

    Diabetic glucose monitor has to be removed prior to an MRI.

    *Rings can stay on as long as the are Gold, Silver, or any other precious metal.

    Upon entering the examination room, you will be given ear plugs or headphones and will be positioned on the table. The area we are imaging will be placed in the center of the magnet. It is very important to remain as still as possible throughout the entire length of the exam. MRI is very susceptible to motion artifact. The technologist's will be able to speak to you during the test and will check up on you regularly. Some test will require the use of a contrast agent. Most often, your contrast injection will come towards the end of the test.

  • What is a CT Scan?

    Computed tomography is commonly referred to as a CT scan. A CT scan is a diagnostic imaging procedure that uses a combination of X-ray and computer technology to produce images of the inside of the body. It shows detailed images of any part of the body, including the bones, muscles, fat, organs and blood vessels.

    CT scans are more detailed than standard X-rays. In standard X-rays, a beam of energy is aimed at the body part being studied. A plate behind the body part captures the variations of the energy beam after it passes through skin, bone, muscle and other tissue. While much information can be obtained from a regular X-ray, a lot of detail about internal organs and other structures is not available.

    In CT, the X-ray beam moves in a circle around the body, creating cross-sectional images. This allows many different views of the same organ or structure and provides much greater detail. The X-ray information is sent to a computer that interprets the X-ray data and displays it in two-dimensional form on a monitor. Newer technology and computer software makes three-dimensional images possible.

    CT scans may be performed to help diagnose tumors, investigate internal bleeding, or check for other internal injuries or damage. CT can also be used for a tissue or fluid biopsy.

    Why are CT scans sometimes ordered with contrast?

    CT scans may be done with or without contrast. Contrast refers to a substance taken by mouth or injected into an IV line that causes the particular organ or tissue under study to be seen more clearly.

    You will need to let your doctor know if you have ever had a reaction to any contrast media and/or any kidney problems. A reported seafood allergy is NOT considered to be a contraindication for iodinated contrast. If you have any medical conditions or recent illnesses, inform your doctor.

    How do I prepare for a CT scan?

    PRECAUTIONS: If you are pregnant or think you may be pregnant, please check with your doctor before scheduling the exam.

    CLOTHING: You may be asked to change into a patient gown. If so, a gown will be provided for you. Please remove all piercings and leave all jewelry and valuables at home.

    CONTRAST MEDIA: Contrast may be indicated for your exam. The contrast media improves the radiologist’s ability to find structures that are abnormal and understand normal anatomy better.

    • Some patients should not have an iodine-based contrast media. If you have problems with your kidney function, please inform receptionist at the time of scheduling.

    • Double-contrast study CT study (aids in visualization of the intestinal tract), which will require you to drink a contrast media before your exam begins in addition to the IV contrast. The more contrast you are able to drink, the better the images are for the radiologist to visualize your digestive tract.

    What are the risks of a CT scan?

    If you are pregnant or think you may be pregnant, you should notify your health care provider.

    The amount of radiation dose used in a CT scan is small. You may want to ask your doctor about the amount of radiation used during the CT procedure and the risks related to your particular situation.

    If you are claustrophobic or tend to become anxious easily, tell your doctor ahead of time. You may be prescribed a mild sedative to take before the procedure to make you more comfortable.

    What happens during a CT scan?

    Generally, CT scans follow this process:

    • You may be asked to change into a patient gown. If so, a gown will be provided for you. Please remove all piercings and leave all jewelry and valuables at home.

    • If you are to have a procedure done with contrast, an IV line will be started in the hand or arm for injection of the contrast media. For oral contrast, you will be given a liquid contrast preparation to swallow prior to your scheduled exam time.

    • You will lie on a scan table that moves into a large, circular opening of the CT scanner.

    • The technologist will be in the control room during the actual scan. However, you will be in constant sight of the technologist through a window. Speakers inside the scanner will enable the technologist to communicate with and hear you. The technologist will be watching you at all times and will be in constant communication.

    • It is important that you remain very still during the procedure. You may be asked to hold your breath at various times during the procedure.

    • If contrast media is used for your procedure, you may feel some effects when the contrast is injected into the IV line. These effects include a flushing sensation, a salty or metallic taste in the mouth, a brief headache, or nausea and/or vomiting. These effects usually last for a few moments.

    • You should notify the technologist if you have any breathing difficulties, sweating, numbness or heart palpitations.

    • When the procedure has been completed, you will be removed from the scanner.

    • If an IV line was inserted for contrast administration, the line will be removed.

    • While the CT procedure itself causes no pain, having to lie still for the length of the procedure might cause some discomfort or pain, particularly in the case of a recent injury or invasive procedure, such as surgery. The technologist will use all possible comfort measures and complete the procedure as quickly as possible to minimize any discomfort or pain.

  • Ultrasound produces sound waves that are beamed into the body causing return echoes that are recorded to "visualize" structures beneath the skin. The ability to measure different echoes reflected from a variety of tissues allows a shadow picture to be constructed. The technology is especially accurate at seeing the interface between solid and fluid filled spaces. These are actually the same principles that allow SONAR on boats to see the bottom of the ocean.

    How do patients prepare for an ultrasound?

    Preparation for ultrasound is minimal. Generally, if internal organs such as the gallbladder are to be examined, patients are requested to avoid eating and drinking with the exception of water for six to eight hours prior to the examination. This is because food causes gallbladder contraction, minimizing the size, which would be visible during the ultrasound.

    In preparation for examination of the pelvic ultrasound, it is recommended that you drink at least four to six glasses of water for approximately one to two hours prior to the examination for the purpose of filling the bladder. The extra fluid in the bladder moves air-filled bowel loops and the organs are more visible during the ultrasound test.

    Ultrasound imaging is based on the same principles involved in the sonar used by bats, ships and fishermen. When a sound wave strikes an object, it bounces back, or echoes. By measuring these echo waves it is possible to determine how far away the object is and its size, shape, and consistency (whether the object is solid, filled with fluid, or both).

    In medicine, ultrasound is used to detect changes in appearance of organs, tissues, and vessels or detect abnormal masses, such as tumors.

    How does the procedure work?

    In an ultrasound examination, a transducer both sends the sound waves and records the echoing waves. When the transducer is pressed against the skin, it directs small pulses of inaudible, high-frequency sound waves into the body. As the sound waves bounce off of internal organs, fluids and tissues, the sensitive microphone in the transducer records tiny changes in the sound's pitch and direction. These signature waves are instantly measured and displayed by a computer, which in turn creates a real-time picture on the monitor. One or more frames of the moving pictures are typically captured as still images.

    Doppler ultrasound, a special application of ultrasound, measures the direction and speed of blood cells as they move through vessels. The movement of blood cells causes a change in pitch of the reflected sound waves (called the Doppler effect). A computer collects and processes the sounds and creates graphs or color pictures that represent the flow of blood through the blood vessels.

    Ultrasounds do not have any radiation.

  • Cardiology is a medical speciality dealing with disorders of the heart. Oakland Imaging Diagnostic Center offers several studies to evaluate cardiac function.

    Echocardiogram, or echo, is a test that shows how well the heart is working. It uses sound waves (ultrasound) to produce moving images of the heart. These images allow the cardiologist to see the shape, size and motion of your heart muscle, valves, and blood flow.

    A cardiac stress test: shows how the heart works during physical activity.

    Stress EKG, shows heart’s electrical activity during exercise, in a controlled setting.

    Stress echocardiography is a combination of a stress EKG and an echocardiogram imaging to show how well the heart muscle functions before and after exercise, in a controlled setting.

    Drug stimulation, known as a Nuclear stress test. Nuclear stress test is an imaging test that shows how blood goes to the heart at rest and during exercise. It uses a small amount of radioactive material, called a tracer or radiotracer. The substance is given by IV. An imaging machine takes pictures of how the tracer moves through the heart arteries. This helps find areas of poor blood flow or damage in the heart.

    Monitors – Patients are able to shower while wearing monitors. Technologist will explain proper procedure for each unit at time of appointment.

    Zio Monitor is a patch patient wears for 3-14 day monitor that is a continuous recording. Purpose is to see if you have any cardiac arrhythmias or irregular heart rhythms. At the end of the study monitor is mailed back and results will be sent to the referring physician.

    MCOT is a continuous recording in real time . You have a sensor that is attached to your chest and a mobile monitor to continuously analyze heart rhythm data. The monitor must be within 30 feet of you. This device is designed to pick up atrial fibrillation, ventricular fibrillation, bradycardia and tachycardia and notify physician if there are any clinically significant arrhythmias.

    Event Monitor is a live monitor that provides electrocardiographic monitoring in real time. You have a sensor that is attached to your chest and a mobile monitor to analyze heart rhythm data. Mobile monitor must be with 30 feet of you. This monitor is patient activated for patients to record symptoms. The monitor detects atrial fibrillation, ventricular fibrillation, bradycardia and tachycardia and automatically records those events. Physician is notified if there are any clinically significant arrhythmias.

    24 Hour Blood Pressure Monitor measures blood pressure at regular intervals, in an effort to determine patients blood pressure throughout the day and night. A blood pressure monitor can help rule out “White Coat Syndrome”, which is when blood pressure is elevated during doctor’s visits due to nervousness and anxiety.

  • Nuclear Medicine

    Nuclear medicine uses radioactive substances to image the body and treat disease. It looks at both the physiology (functioning) and the anatomy of the body in establishing diagnosis and treatment.

    A nuclear medicine exam is a safe and painless procedure which utilizes radioactive material to detect and diagnose disease. It can often identify abnormalities early in the progression of a disease, a time when a more successful treatment may be possible.

    Nuclear medicine imaging techniques give doctors another way to look inside the human body. The techniques combine the use of computers, detectors, and radioactive substances. All of these techniques use different properties of radioactive elements to create an image.

    Single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT)

    Cardiovascular imaging

    Bone scanning

    Gallbladder and gastric emptying studies

    Nuclear medicine imaging is useful for detecting:

    Irregular or inadequate blood flow to various tissues

    Blood cell disorders and inadequate functioning of organs, such as thyroid and parathyroid function

    The use of any specific test, or combination of tests, depends upon the patients symptoms and the disease being diagnosed.

  • Diagnostic Radiology — Xray

    Diagnotic radiology is the use of various imaging modalities to aid in the diagnosis of disease. Diagnostic radiology can be further divided into multiple sub-specialty areas.

    Radiographs are images created with X-rays and used for the evaluation of many bony and soft tissue structures.

  • Mammography is a specific type of imaging that uses a low-dose x-ray system to examine breasts. A mammogram, is used to aid in the early detection and diagnosis of breast diseases in women.

    A mammogram is an x-ray image of the breast used to screen for breast cancer. Mammograms represent the gold standard and play a key role in early breast cancer detection. A mammogram can show changes in the breast before a woman or her health care provider can feel any lumps or see any changes in the breast.

    During a mammogram your breast is compressed between two firm surfaces in order to spread out the breast tissue, then an x-ray captures the image digitally and on film that is examined by the radiologist.

    Digital breast tomosynthesis (DBT) or 3-D mammography is the latest innovation in the field of breast mammography and like a traditional mammogram uses low-dose X-ray to image the breast while in compression. Digital breast tomosynthesis has been shown clinically to improve cancer detection in patients while also reducing the false positive rate of examinations.

    Preparation: Do not use deodorant, powder or lotions under your arms or on your breasts the day of your exam.

  • A bone density test — also called densitometry or DXA scan — determines whether you have osteoporosis or are at risk of osteoporosis. Osteoporosis is a disease that causes bones to become more fragile and more likely to break.

    In the past, osteoporosis could only be detected after you broke a bone. By that time, however, your bones could be quite weak. A bone density test makes it possible to know your risk of breaking bones before the fact.

    A bone density test uses X-rays to measure how many grams of calcium and other bone minerals are packed into a segment of bone. A bone density test is a fairly accurate predictor of your risk of fracture.

    Preparation: No calcium or tums the day before appointment. Do not wear clothing with metal (zipper or bra clips). If you do, you will be asked to change into a gown provided for you.

    Procedure: You will be asked to lie flat on your back on a slightly padded table. A mechanical arm-like device passes over your body, this device will not touch you. The bone density of your hip and spine will be measured by the device taking an x-ray. The actual scan time is 5-10 minutes. The results from a bone denisty test shows your fracture risk. The bone density test results are reported in two numbers, T-score and Z-score.

  • Neurology is a medical specialty dealing with disorders of the nervous system. Oakland Imaging Diagnostic Center Offers several studies to evaluate the nervous system.

    EMG (ELECTROMYOGRAM) is the technique for evaluating the electrical activity produced by the muscles and nerves, using needles and electrical stimulation. This test is performed by a doctor. During an EMG small needles are inserted into muscles to measure electrical activity. You will be asked to contract your muscles by moving a small amount during the test. For the nerve conduction study small electrodes will be taped to your skin or placed around your fingers. You will typically experience a mild and brief tingling or shock. An EMG can diagnosis several neurological problems such as a herniated disc, or carpel tunnel syndrome.

  • Pulmonary function tests are a group of tests that measure how well the lungs take in and release air and how well they move gases such as oxygen from the atmosphere into the body's circulation.

    How the Test is Performed

    In a spirometry test, you breathe into a mouthpiece that is connected to an instrument called a spirometer. The spirometer records the amount and the rate of air that you breathe in and out over a period of time.

    For some of the test measurements, you can breathe normally and quietly. Other tests require forced inhalation or exhalation after a deep breath.

    You will sit in a sealed, clear box that looks like a telephone booth (body plethysmograph) while breathing in and out into a mouthpiece. Changes in pressure inside the box help determine the lung volume.

    Lung volume can also be measured when you breathe air through a tube for a certain period of time. The concentration of the gas in a chamber attached to the tube is measured to estimate the lung volume.

    To measure diffusion capacity, you breathe a harmless gas for a very short time, often one breath. The concentration of the gas in the air you breathe out is measured. The difference in the amount of gas inhaled and exhaled measures how effectively gas travels from the lungs into the blood.

    You will be tested before and after a bronchodilator and so it is important that you do not use your own rescue inhaler 24 hours prior to your test.