X-ray

Exam Forms

All forms should be completed in advance of your appointment. Please follow the links below to access the X-ray Form required for your upcoming appointment.

X-ray Form  

Exam Preparation

Please notify our staff when scheduling and checking in for your appointment if any of the following apply to you:

• If there is any possibility that you are pregnant or if you are currently breastfeeding.
• If you need an interpreter to assist you with your native language.

Arrive at the time of your appointment. Weill Cornell Imaging at NewYork-Presbyterian is limiting the number of patients in our offices at any one time. Patients who arrive early may be asked to return at the time they are scheduled.

Unless needed for physical assistance or to translate for you, visitors are not allowed to accompany patients at any of our practices. For pediatric patients, one parent may accompany a child. 

What should I wear to my appointment?

Wearing the right clothing may eliminate the need for you to change into a gown prior to your exam.

• Wear loungewear, pajamas, or loose-fitting cotton or linen clothing without metal embellishment. Metal can affect the quality of the images.
• Do not wear clothing or undergarments with metal fasteners, zippers, hooks, under wires or other metal components.
• Please leave items such as watches and jewelry at home.

What should I bring with me on the day of my appointment?

• A copy of the prescription for your examination if it was given to you.
• Your insurance information.
• A completed exam form if you did not already email it to us.
• A list of your current medications.

What can I expect on the day of my appointment?

All of our imaging practices have procedures in place to ensure the safety of our patients and staff. These include:

• Increased cleaning and disinfection protocols for all equipment and surfaces in all common and clinical areas and between each appointment. 
• Hand sanitizer and appropriate disinfecting wipes in each clinical area. 
• Managing patient schedules and waiting rooms to ensure appropriate social distancing.  
• Universal mask policy for patients, visitors and staff. 

All patients and visitors are clinically screened upon arrival including a temperature check.

Patient verification is an important part of your safety and you will be asked to verify your identification and your exam several times during your appointment. Our check-in staff will review your completed registration forms with you.

For many exams you will not have to change into a gown unless you are wearing something that contains metal (see guidelines above).  Some exams do require that you are in a gown. You will be asked to remove and place your electronic devices, wallet, credit cards, metro card, watch, jewelry, belt, hairpins, eyeglasses, hearing aid, or any removable dental pieces into the provided lockers. It is best to keep valuables at home.

How is an X-ray performed?

• You will be positioned on an x-ray table that carefully positions the part of the body that is to be x-rayed between the x-ray machine and a cassette containing the x-ray film or specialized image plate. Some examinations may be performed with the patient in a sitting or standing position.
• Body parts not being imaged may be covered with a lead apron (shield) to avoid exposure to the x-rays.
• The x-ray beam will be focused on the area to be photographed.
• You must be very still or the image will be blurred.
• The technologist will step behind a protective window and the image is taken.
• Depending on the body part under study, various x-rays may be taken at different angles, such as the front and side view during a chest x-ray.
• Upon completion, the technologist will escort you outside of the scanning room where you will retrieve your personal belongings and proceed to check-out.

Our staff is available to address any questions or concerns that you might have before, during, or after your appointment. Please call (212) 746-6000 if you wish to speak with us.

Health Library

X-ray

What is an x-ray?

X-rays use invisible electromagnetic energy beams to produce images of internal tissues, bones, and organs on film or digital media. Standard x-rays are performed for many reasons, including diagnosing tumors or bone injuries.

X-rays are made by using external radiation to produce images of the body, its organs, and other internal structures for diagnostic purposes. X-rays pass through body structures onto specially-treated plates (similar to camera film) or digital media and a "negative" type picture is made (the more solid a structure is, the whiter it appears on the film).

When the body undergoes x-rays, different parts of the body allow varying amounts of the x-ray beams to pass through. The soft tissues in the body (such as blood, skin, fat, and muscle) allow most of the x-ray to pass through and appear dark gray on the film or digital media. A bone or a tumor, which is denser than the soft tissues, allows few of the x-rays to pass through and appears white on the x-ray. At a break in a bone, the x-ray beam passes through the broken area and appears as a dark line in the white bone.

X-ray technology is used in other types of diagnostic procedures, such as arteriograms, computed tomography (CT) scans, and fluoroscopy.

If you are pregnant or think you may be pregnant, it is important that you notify your physician before you have an x-ray.