Radiology, a Medical Specialty

Abstract

Radiology is one of the youngest of the medical specialties, yet it wields an influence in organized medicine far in excess of its years. The diagnostic division occupies a cardinal place in almost all branches of medical science, for without a dependable roentgen diagnostic service accurate general medical diagnosis becomes exceedingly difficult and often impossible. A specialty has as its major purpose the better accomplishment of certain functions than is possible where the field of endeavor is less limited. If there be need for the specialty under consideration and if the services entailed are available, from the economic standpoint, to the majority of those requiring them, success is assured. That the specialty of Radiology fills a great need is attested by its growth and the dependence placed upon the radiologist by his fellow physicians. The development of the science of Radiology is of interest. We are all familiar with the history of the discovery of what William Conrad Roentgen, a physicist, termed the x-ray, a hitherto unknown type of ray later to be known as the roentgen ray. His investigations were so complete that little has been added to our knowledge of the characteristics of this ray since he announced his major findings and conclusions before the Wurzburg Physical Medical Society in 1895. It at once became evident, especially to the medical profession, that here was a tool which would profoundly influence diagnosis. Somewhat later it was obvious that the influence on some forms of medical treatment would also be marked. The evolution of specialization in the practice of medicine is usually gradual, but in Radiology we have an example of a specialty that burst into full flower almost immediately following Roentgen's initial announcement. In The Science of Radiology, edited by Otto Glasser of the Cleveland Clinic Foundation, there appears under the heading “Early Roentgen Literature” the statement that “before Roentgen's announcements were one year old three small books on Radiology had been published in America.” The three were: Roentgen Rays and the Phenomena of the Anode and Cathode, by Edward P. Thompson, M.E.E.E., of New York; The X Ray or Photography of the Invisible, by William J. Morton, in collaboration with Edwin W. Hammer, Electrical Engineer; The ABC of X Rays, by William H. Meadowcroft of New York. The writer is fortunate in owning copies of the first two of the three. Because of its bearing on the development of the specialty of Radiology, the book by Morton deserves special consideration.