Entry #2: A brief history of fluoroscopy

The father of the x-ray was also the father of the fluoroscope. In 1895 Roentgen produced the first fluoroscope using a cardboard box. Modern fluoroscopy machines are made of much stronger stuff than the cardboard Roentgen used! Within a year of the birth of Roentgen’s fluoroscope, Thomas Edison had produced a conventional fluoroscope by using a new type of screen. Less than 50 years later, 1937 to be exact, and Irving Langmuir was earning an award for his development and patent of the first fluoroscopic image intensifier.

Eleven years later and JW Coltman improved Langmuir’s design to the point that fluoroscopy was beginning to be used clinically. It wouldn’t be long until it the image intensifier became a commercialized piece of medical equipment in 1953 and paved the way for the birth of the medical C-arm. With the improvements made to fluoroscopy it quickly became a necessity for every facility. After the 1980’s fluoroscopy was popularized, especially in orthopedics, and is now a staple modality in many hospitals and clinics. Fluoroscopic examinations are performed across the world every day now and have helped many doctors and other medical personal in their efforts to cure and care for patients.

I, for one, am incredibly grateful for this technology that exists and is available at nearly every facility near me. The fact that we are now able to view our organs as they work is fascinating to me!