Medical imaging systems

The invention of the stethoscope in 1816 opened a new era in diagnostic medicine. For perhaps the first time the physician, aided by an instrument of science, could obtain information from the inside of the human body without surgical intervention. With the help of this simple instrument the trained practitioner could form an impression of the state of form and function of a variety of internal organs. The stethoscope can be considered a precursor of modern medical imaging systems, systems designed to provide information about the body's interior with minimum risk to the patient. The 19th century brought two other important medical imaging instruments, the opthalmascope, used to study the retina, and the first x-ray imagers.