New vistas for the study of structural and functional dynamics of the heart, lungs, and circulation by noninvasive numerical tomographic vivisection

Abstract

Major segments of the biologic sciences and the practice of medicine are based on study and knowledge of the relationships of anatomic structure to biologic function. Traditionally, this knowledge has been gained by indirect means, inference, or by direct surgical vivisection or postmortem examination. The revolutionary capability of nondestructive, operator interactive, mathematical vivisection provided by synchronous cylindrical scanning tomography to obtain similar information non-invasively and painlessly will provide these data to the internist for individual patients. Furthermore, this information will be in a computerized format which can be subjected to myriad types of objective measurements and display. These developments promise beneficial effects of clinical diagnosis and health care which may approach those associated with the discoveries of the biomedical investigative and clinical diagnostic value of X-rays and cardiac catheterization.