Diagnosing With a Pelvic CT Scan

January 9, 2018 – 4 min read

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Pelvic CT Scan

A pelvic CT scan takes detailed, cross-sectional images of the bones, organs, blood vessels and soft tissue in your pelvis. This type of scanning can be useful for diagnosing a range of issues, assessing the progress of certain diseases or tracking treatment results. Similar to an X-ray, these scans create computerized images of areas that your doctor cannot see, allowing them to check for fluid or abscesses, inflammation, or infection.

If your doctor recommends a CT scan of your pelvis, you may have a lot of questions. Here are the essentials and a closer look at when and how these procedures are used.

When Will a Doctor Prescribe This Scan?

Physicians may recommend this scan if you have a lot of pain in that area or have sustained a pelvic injury. Doctors can use a CT scan of the abdomen and pelvis to visualize where needles must be placed during tumor biopsies or to help remove fluid from an infection.

Throughout your treatment, the physician may use additional pelvis CT scans to see how your treatment is progressing. In these situations, the physician uses the information collected from the CT scan to see if there are any concerns during recovery or treatment.

How Much Does a Pelvic CT Scan Cost?

If you find out you need an advanced imaging screening, you may be overwhelmed with questions and thoughts. Right away, the cost factor will become something to consider. The cost of a pelvic CT scan will vary based on each facility’s professional and technical fees, as well as where you live.

Diagnostic imaging performed by American Health Imaging costs significantly less than hospitals and hospital-owned outpatient facilities. Use the American Health Imaging Cost Calculator to ensure you are receiving the best price on quality imaging care.

What Can a Pelvic CT Scan Show?

If you’re suffering from pain in your abdomen or pelvis, or if your doctors suspect that you have certain issues, they may suggest a CT pelvic scan. These scans can be used to gather more information and diagnose the following conditions:

  • Abdominal aortic aneurysms
  • Cancers in the pelvic region, such as liver, kidney, pancreas, ovary or bladder cancer
  • Cirrhosis of the liver
  • Inflammatory diseases, such as Crohn’s disease, pancreatitis, liver cirrhosis, ulcerative colitis or other inflammatory diseases
  • Injuries to the liver, kidneys, spleen or other abdominal organs
  • Kidney or bladder stones
  • Pancreatitis
  • Pelvic infections, such as appendicitis, pyelonephritis or pelvic inflammatory diseases

Can Doctors Diagnose Serious Diseases with CT Scans?

Depending on the results of a CT scan, a technologist may be able to identify certain markers for a variety of conditions, including cancer and severe inflammation.

What Cancers Does a Pelvic CT Scan Show?

Doctors can diagnose a variety of cancers with a pelvic CT scan, such as:

  • Bladder cancer
  • Cervical cancer
  • Colorectal cancer
  • Ovarian cancer
  • Prostate cancer
  • Testicular cancer

Pelvic CT Scan for Inflammatory Disease

If your physician recommends a pelvis CT scan because they suspect that you have pelvic inflammatory disease, a pelvic CT scan can detect any infection or swelling.

Although the exact results can vary based on the type of infection, physicians use pelvis CT scans when diagnosing and treating pelvic infections. They use the scans to diagnose the issue, to see how advanced it is, and to help map out treatment options.

Choosing a Location for Your Scan

Generally, the two main options for CT scans are hospitals or standalone imaging centers. For best results and lower prices, you should choose an imaging center. These facilities exclusively focus on imaging, which means they often have better equipment or more options than most hospitals. Additionally, imaging centers tend to have significantly lower prices than hospitals. Imaging centers take more scans, so they can spread the cost of equipment, staff, and maintenance across more patients, helping to keep costs low.

If you have unexplained pain in your pelvic region or if you are suffering from a pelvic infection, a pelvis CT scan can be a powerful tool in your healthcare journey. American Health Imaging offers pelvic CT scans in the Southeast across dozens of locations in Georgia, Florida, Alabama and Texas.

If you want to schedule a CT scan for yourself or set up an appointment for a patient, contact American Health Imaging today.

This post was updated on 11/17/2020.