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Interested in learning more about Medical Imaging of Fredericksburg or our imaging services?
Check our latest blog posts for more information!

Our knowledge about the value offered by various medical providers can help us make more informed medical choices. Like everything else that we shop for, we have choices when it comes to medical treatment, medicine and medical services (such as imaging).

Where Are Our Priorities?

What is on the top of our mind when comparing medical care options? According to a recent artic...

Does your health insurance provider offer benefits that you don’t know about? When it comes to staying healthy, more and more insurance companies are recognizing the value of preventative screening.

According to Eric Hargis, public policy adviser for the Colon Cancer Alliance, “Too many Americans are dying from a largely preventable disease that can almost always be treated if found...

The acronym AAA is short for Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm. If you think that sounds serious, you’re right. An aneurysm is a medical term used to describe a dilation or widening of an artery or blood vessel. Add the word “aortic” and you’re talking about a major coronary artery–the one that leaves the heart to supply blood to your body. The type of aortic aneurysm we’re talking about ...

Diagnostic imaging is the term used to describe all the different ways that physicians are able to look inside your body. A diagnostic imaging center has equipment and trained specialists to perform those tests. A doctor is then able to take the results from the diagnostic tests and draw conclusions from them.

Screening is used by healthy people to look for potential problems. If possib...

Diagnostic imaging describes a variety of non-invasive methods of looking inside the body to help determine the causes of an injury or an illness, and to confirm a diagnosis. It is also used to see how well your body is responding to a treatment for an illness or a fracture.

The most common types of diagnostic imaging include the following services.

The X-ray

The x-ray is...

Fredericksburg, VA, February 18th, 2019

– Medical Imaging of Fredericksburg (MIF) is now offering the latest technology in the early detection and localization of recurrent prostate cancer with the Axumin PET/CT Scan.

Prostate-specific antigen (PSA) tests remain the most common method for measuring prostate cancer recurrences; however, the standard follow-up body and bone scan...

You might remember the television show Star Trek.

When Dr. Leonard “Bones” McCoy (the show’s chief medical officer) cared for a sick patient on board the Starship Enterprise, he checked the patient with his scanner in the ship’s sickbay to get a diagnosis instantly. While we aren’t on the Enterprise, advances in medical imaging allow us to receive diagnoses that can seem just a...

Medical Imaging of Fredericksburg is committed to offering our patients the highest level of innovation and patient comfort available with the region's only True Open MRI at Medical Imaging at Lee's Hill and Medical Imaging at Harrison Crossing. Magnetic Resonance Imaging, or MRI, is a safe and painless way for doctors to view internal anatomy without surgical procedures.

Com...

Often when people think of MRIs, they think of loud, alarming noises, claustrophobia, and long periods of stillness. But that doesn't have to be the experience. Now, more hospitals and imaging centers are turning to open MRIs as a more comfortable and stress-free alternative to traditional MRIs. If you or a loved one has recently been prescribed an MRI, it’s important to get the facts before ...

In early 2016, the American Cancer Society estimated that there would be 95,270 new cases of colon cancer and 39,220 new cases of rectal cancer, bringing the total new cases of colorectal cancer to 134,490. It is the third most common type of cancer for men and women in the United States.

Early Detection

Screening for colorectal cancer is an excellent tool for early detection of...

Typically, CT scans are used to diagnosis an illness or injury. But did you know that they can also be used as part of a preventative heart health plan? Cardiac scoring CT scans are used to provide your physician with information regarding your cardiac health by detecting the presence of calcium within your arteries. The levels found in a “heart scan” are presented as a cardiac or calcium s...

Modern medicine has advanced well beyond x-rays. At Medical Imaging of Fredericksburg, we have ultrasounds, mammography, CT scans, several types of MRIs, PET scans, and PET-CT scans. The two most commonly used tests besides x-rays are CT scans and MRIs, both of which provide more detail than x-rays. If you need specialized imaging, it can be helpful to understand the operation and uses for a CT...

When it comes to your doctor deciding on an MRI vs. CT Scan, it will be based on your medical condition and what your doctor needs to know in order to make a diagnosis or prescribe treatment.

What is an MRI?

An MRI is done by using a powerful magnetic field combined with radio waves that allow a computer to produce images of the inside of the body. MRI images will look for abnorm...

The amount you smoke over time has a cumulative effect on your risk for cancer. It puts you at a higher risk for certain types of cancer, including common lung cancers. One way to determine your risk is by calculating your pack-years.

Simply put, a pack-year is a measurement of the number of cigarettes you consume over a period of time. To calculate, you’ll need the number of years sm...

If your loved one is a smoker or has a history of smoking, a lung scan could save their life.

As a relative or close friend, we have the unique ability to influence the critical decision-making of our loved ones. Here are three ways you can encourage them to get a lung scan.

Talk to them about prevention.

A lung scan can detect some cancers before there are even symptoms. ...

If you’re a smoker, your family is understandably concerned about your health. Lung cancer is a scary prospect, and they worry about you. They’d rather you didn’t smoke. You’d rather you didn’t smoke, too. Kudos to you for your efforts to quit – please don’t give up! If you have quit in the last 15 years or are still smoking, there is something you can do that will make your fam...

If you’re a post-menopausal woman, you should ask your doctor about a DEXA Scan. A DEXA Scan is a test to measure bone density. DEXA stands for Dual-energy X-ray Absorptiometry and is also sometimes referred to as Bone Densitometry. It helps your doctor diagnose or predict your risk of developing osteoporosis using low-dose x-rays, and can also help predict your risk for bone fractures...

Cardiac scoring, which is sometimes referred to as a heart scan or a calcium score, is a non-invasive CT scan of the heart. The test is designed to calculate your risk

of developing Coronary Artery Disease (aka CAD) by measuring the amount of calcified plaque in your coronary arteries. The coronary arteries are the blood vessels that supply oxygen-rich blood to your heart. The plaque tha...

Post-menopause can be a drastic adjustment for many women. Your body has undergone a significant physical change. With that come certain increased risks due to a sharp decrease in your estrogen and other hormones. Some women may choose hormone replacement therapy (HRT) to deal with menopausal symptoms and health risks, although HRT itself can increase the risk of certain diseases. In gener...

A bone density scan makes all the difference in preventing complications due to osteoporosis. It’s the only scan that can detect osteoporosis before a break or fracture occurs. This allows doctors to treat osteoporosis in a way that could prevent a fracture.

When You Need A Bone Density Scan

Risk factors for osteoporosis include, but are not limited to:

Being 65 ye...