The CT scan machine was invented in 1971. British engineer Sir Godfrey Hounsfield developed the first working computed tomography scanner, and doctors performed the first clinical CT scan on a human brain in October 1971 in London. The invention became publicly known in 1972, when researchers formally presented it to the medical community.
When was CT scan machine invented
Computed Tomography (CT) combines X-ray measurements taken from multiple angles with computer-based image reconstruction to create cross-sectional images of the body. Before CT, doctors relied on plain X-rays, which could not separate overlapping internal structures.
Hounsfield worked at EMI Laboratories in the United Kingdom. He built the first scanner specifically for brain imaging. Around the same period, Allan M. Cormack, a physicist, independently developed the mathematical principles that made image reconstruction possible. Their combined work transformed diagnostic radiology.
In 1979, the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine recognized Hounsfield and Cormack for the invention of computed tomography.
Key factual milestones
- 1967–1971: Development of CT reconstruction methods and prototype scanners
- October 1971: First successful human CT brain scan
- 1972: Public announcement and clinical adoption begins
- 1974–1976: Introduction of whole-body CT scanners
- 1979: Nobel Prize awarded for CT technology
The first clinical CT scan occurred in October 1971 and imaged the human brain.
The original CT scanner required several minutes per slice and hours for image reconstruction.
Early CT systems used single-slice detectors and focused only on head imaging.
Whole-body CT scanners entered hospitals by 1975, expanding CT beyond neurology.
CT imaging relies on X-ray attenuation values, measured in Hounsfield Units (HU).
Clarification: invention vs. adoption
The CT scan machine was invented in 1971, but widespread hospital use began after 1972. Brain CT came first. Body CT followed within four years as detector speed and computing power improved.
FAQ
Sir Godfrey Hounsfield invented the first CT scanner. Allan Cormack provided the mathematical foundation.
At Atkinson Morley Hospital in London, United Kingdom.
They had slow detectors and limited computing power, which restricted imaging to small, stationary anatomy.
Hospitals began using whole-body CT scanners around 1974–1975.
Yes. CT dates to 1971, while clinical MRI appeared in the late 1970s to early 1980s.
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