Fluoroscope

Fluoroscope, in medicine, apparatus for examining internal organs, used especially in diagnosis. The essential parts of the fluoroscope are an X-ray tube and a fluorescent screen. The subject to be diagnosed is placed between the X-ray tube and the fluorescent screen. Wherever the X-ray radiations fall on the screen, it glows vividly; where the X rays are reflected or absorbed, shadows are cast on the screen. Bones cast heavy shadows, and fleshy organs such as the heart cast light shadows. In abdominal analysis barium salts are administered either orally or rectally before examination. Because these salts are opaque to X rays, their passage through the alimentary canal can be traced.

Fluoroscopy can reveal cancer of the bones or digestive tract; ulcers of the digestive tract; and osteoporosis, a condition in which the bones are reduced in mass. See also X Ray.