X-rays are produced by the use of high voltage current in X-ray tubes. X-rays are “ionizing” rays, which are rays that can remove electrons from atoms or molecules. X-rays are used only with exact attention to radiation protection and when the examination is clinically justified. The amount of X-rays used varies – depending on the patient and the information required – and is therefore always individually adjusted.
In practical terms, X-rays pass through the human body in much the same way that sunlight passes through paper or flower petals. The different tissues of the human body have different shadowing effects on the X-rays used, so they also appear in different shades of gray, black and white (shading or brightening) on the X-ray image.
X-rays are the radiological method of first choice for all diseases of the musculoskeletal system (e.g. broken bones) or the lungs (e.g. pneumonia).