What does radiology mean?
Radiology is the medical field that uses images of the body to identify, investigate, and monitor disease. Its techniques include X-rays, ultrasound, computed tomography, magnetic resonance imaging, and nuclear medicine. A patient may be sent to a radiology department for an examination, while a radiologist interprets the resulting images and communicates findings to other clinicians. Radiology is therefore both a diagnostic specialty and a service within hospitals and healthcare systems. The field developed after the discovery of X-rays and the introduction of radiography, and it has expanded greatly as imaging technologies have become more sophisticated. The word is especially common in medicine, healthcare administration, and clinical research.
nounThe branch of medicine that uses medical imaging, especially X-rays, ultrasound, CT scans, MRI, and related techniques, to diagnose and treat disease.
- The branch of medicine concerned with producing and interpreting medical images for diagnosis and treatment.
"She was referred to radiology for an MRI scan."
"The radiology department operates a CT scanner for emergency examinations."
"A radiologist reviewed the scan and prepared a report for the referring physician."
Rare and uncommon; in general usage, radiology is normally an uncountable field name.
"The lecture compared radiologies in different healthcare systems."
Radiology transformed medicine by allowing clinicians to see inside the body without surgery.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does radiology come from?
Radiology was formed in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries by combining radi-, referring to radiation or rays, with the Greek-derived suffix -logy, meaning the study of. Its development was closely associated with the discovery of X-rays and the emergence of radiography as a medical technique. Related English words include radio, radium, radiate, and radiant, all reflecting the idea of rays or radiation.
Related word forms
How radiology is actually used
In clinical and administrative contexts, radiology usually refers to the medical imaging department or discipline rather than to a particular image. The term is formal and technical; radiologist is the usual term for a physician who specializes in radiology.
Easily confused with radiology
Radiology is the medical discipline that interprets and uses medical images, whereas radiography is the technique of producing those images, especially with X-rays.