Mass research with use X-rays: first steps of fluorography

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.15421/271904

Abstract

The article discusses the preconditions and first attempts to use X-rays in medical practice for mass research of the chest organs. An epidemic of tuberculosis that arose in Europe during the First World War was a significant impetus for the development of the method of this kind. The construction of a new diagnostic technique provided, first of all, a significant reduction in the cost of obtaining one picture. The solution of the above problem was photographing objects from a fluorescent screen using a conventional camera and small-format film. However, the low technical characteristics of the equipment, films and screens used inhibited the implementation of the method in the broad practice for a long time. The creation of zinc-cadmium-sulfide screens eliminated the last obstacle to the development of the method of mass examination of the thoracic cavity – fluorography.

In 1937, the Brazilian radiologist Manuel Dias de Abreu was the first to conduct a massive prophylactic fluorographic study of the lungs of the inhabitants of Rio de Janeiro. In 12 days, 758 people were photographed, and the study was 1.5 times faster and cost almost 20 times less than usual scanning. His success inspired scientists from different countries to own developments, which were sometimes used to «cull» people. Thus, in Nazi Germany workers with signs of tuberculosis were to be released, and prisoners of concentration camps were to be exterminated.

In the USSR, the first report on the creation of a domestic fluorograph appeared in 1939 by the author J. L. Shik. Also, significant contribution to the development of the method was made by K. V. Pomeltsov, V. F. Kupriyanov, J. L. Shekhtman, N. F. Zarkevich and others. The experience of the Second World War proved the feasibility of using fluorographic research for the control medical examinations of military teams. Since 1948, the industrial production of fluorographs and the training of relevant specialists have begun in the USSR. For several years, the method of fluorography has become an integral part of the health system.

Thanks to the development and implementation of fluorographic research in Europe and America, the spread of the epidemic of pulmonary tuberculosis has been stopped. As a result of preventive measures, the general population was able to receive timely assistance. The economic and diagnostic value of the method allows its use in the modern medical practice.

Published

2019-11-20