Medical physics is a branch of applied physics concerning the application of physics to medicine. It generally concerns physics as applied to medical imaging and radiotherapy, although a medical physicist may also work in many other areas of healthcare. A medical physics department may be based in either a hospital or a university and its work is likely to include research, technical development and clinical healthcare.

Medical imaging

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* Diagnostic radiology, including x-rays, fluoroscopy, mammography, Dual energy X-ray absorptiometry, angiography and Computed tomography
* Ultrasound, including intravascular ultrasound
* Non-ionising radiation (Lasers, Ultraviolet etc.)
* Nuclear medicine, including SPECT and positron emission tomography (PET)
* Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), including functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) and other methods for functional neuroimaging of the brain.
**For example, nuclear magnetic resonance (often referred to as magnetic resonance imaging to avoid the common concerns about radiation), uses the phenomenon of nuclear resonance to image the human body.
* Magnetoencephalography
* Electrical impedance tomography
* Diffuse optical imaging
* Optical coherence tomography
* Terahertz radiation

Treatment of disease

*Defibrillation
* High intensity focussed ultrasound, including lithotripsy
*Interventional radiology
*Non-ionising radiation Lasers, Ultraviolet etc. including photodynamic therapy and LASIK
*Nuclear medicine, including unsealed source radiotherapy
*Photomedicine, the use of light to treat and diagnose disease
*Radiotherapy
*Sealed source radiotherapy

Physiological Measurement Techniques

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Used to monitor and measure various physiological parameters. Many physiological measurement techniques are non-invasive and can be used in conjunction with, or as an alternative to, other invasive methods.
* Electrocardiography
* Electromyography
* Electroencephalography
* Electronystagmography
* Endoscopy
* Medical ultrasonography
* Non-ionising radiation (Lasers, Ultraviolet etc.)
* Near infrared spectroscopy
* Pulse oximetry
* Blood gas monitor
* Blood pressure measurement

Radiation Protection

* Background radiation
* Radiation protection
* Dosimetry

Medical Computing and Mathematics

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* Medical informatics
* Telemedicine
* Picture archiving and communication systems (PACS)
* DICOM
* Tomographic reconstruction, an ill-posed inverse problem

Education

*United States:
**CAMPEP Accredited Graduate Programs in Medical Physics:http://www.campep.org/campeplstgrad.html
**CAMPEP non-Accredited Graduate Programs in Medical Physics:http://www.aapm.org/education/noncampep.asp
*Canadian programs: http://www.medphys.ca/article.asp?id=79
*Other programs around the world: http://www.iomp.org/MPlinkpage.htm

Biomedical engineering

* Biomedical engineering
* Biomechanics
* Functional electrical stimulation
* Dialysis
* Gait analysis
* Prosthetics
* Cochlear implants
* Nanomedicine

See also

* See also important publications in medical physics

External links

*American Association of Medical Physicists
Category:Applied and interdisciplinary physics