Day 25 - CT Scan

"A CT (computerised tomography) scanner is a special kind of X-ray machine. Instead of sending out a single X-ray through your body as with ordinary X-rays, several beams are sent simultaneously from different angles.


The technique of CT scanning was developed by the British inventor Sir Godfrey Hounsfield, who was awarded the Nobel Prize for his work.

CT scans are far more detailed than ordinary X-rays. The information from the two-dimensional computer images can be reconstructed to produce three-dimensional images by some modern CT scanners.

Far more X-rays are involved in a CT scan than in ordinary X-rays, so doctors do not recommend CT scans without a good medical reason. Some patients may experience side effects due to allergic reactions to the liquid dye injected into the veins."*

*http://www.netdoctor.co.uk/health_advice/examinations/ctgeneral.htm

My company called me yesterday just after my appointment with the ENT doctor, and told me I am now going being posted to The Gambia in West Africa and not to Taiwan anymore. I immediately called the doctor and asked to be put forward for a CT scan.

I was reluctant to do a scan as I know they emit a lot of radiation - the ENT doctor recommended that, due to the negative health implications associated with CT scans, the maximum number of CT scans to carry out in one’s lifetime is five.

Today I went to a private hospital to get the CT scan done.

Obviously I expected to pay a large sum (I do not have private medical insurance) but what I was confronted with nearly gave me a heart attack (on top of the headache).

I was strapped to the machine and part slid into the tunnel - I could still move my legs about as only my head was tightly strapped.

The scan only lasted fifteen minutes or so, and I was relieved when it was over. Now all I need are the results which I am told will only take a day or two to get to me.