Knee X-ray (1 to 2 views, both knees)

This is the short knee x-ray — one or two views — billed for both knees. It is the quick look: is anything broken, is the kneecap where it should be, how much space is left between the bones. It is a smaller and cheaper study than the four-or-more-view knee series, and it is not the study that answers every knee question.

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What it is

A one- or two-view knee film is the abbreviated version of the knee study: a picture from the front, usually with a second from the side. That pair shows the obvious things — a break across the top of the shinbone or the end of the thighbone, a kneecap sitting out of line, hardware from a previous operation, and the width of the gap between the bones where cartilage should be holding them apart. What it does not show is everything the longer series was designed for, because the kneecap needs a view taken from above with the knee bent and the back of the joint needs an angled projection of its own. Ordering the short version is a deliberate choice: enough to answer a specific question, not a full survey of the joint. Here it is billed for both knees.

Why it is done

To rule out a fracture quickly after a fall or a twist, when the examination already points to a particular problem
To confirm the position of the kneecap, or of a joint replacement or fixation hardware, without repeating a full series
To compare left and right when both knees hurt and the question is whether they are wearing at the same rate
To take a quick baseline before or after a procedure, where a fuller study has already been done recently
To check alignment in a knee that has been immobilised, where only one or two angles are needed

What to expect

For a lying-down study the leg is straightened on the table and the second image is taken with the knee turned to the side. For standing views, both knees are imaged with the weight on them, which is the position that shows what the joint does under load. Both knees make the visit slightly longer than one, but it is still a matter of minutes. There is no preparation. A radiologist reads the images and reports them; if the short study does not answer the question, the report may say so, and further views can follow.

Questions worth asking

This code is one or two views. If the radiologist or the clinician asks for more views the same day, does that become a second, larger knee charge or replace this one?
Were the images taken standing or lying down, and does the study that was ordered match the question being asked? A repeat visit for the right views costs again.
If both knees are being imaged only because both are being assessed for replacement, is there a single pre-operative imaging charge or one per knee?
Was this taken at a walk-in imaging centre or a hospital outpatient department, and how far apart are the two prices for the same two pictures?

What Knee X-ray (1 to 2 views, both knees) costs by state

Knee X-ray (1 to 2 views, both knees) cost in Texas — 109 hospitals, median $383.10
Knee X-ray (1 to 2 views, both knees) cost in Florida — 82 hospitals, median $601.44
Knee X-ray (1 to 2 views, both knees) cost in Ohio — 67 hospitals, median $387.40
Knee X-ray (1 to 2 views, both knees) cost in California — 66 hospitals, median $338.00
Knee X-ray (1 to 2 views, both knees) cost in Illinois — 51 hospitals, median $402.48
Knee X-ray (1 to 2 views, both knees) cost in Virginia — 43 hospitals, median $255.50
Knee X-ray (1 to 2 views, both knees) cost in Tennessee — 38 hospitals, median $92.40
Knee X-ray (1 to 2 views, both knees) cost in Pennsylvania — 33 hospitals, median $262.40
Knee X-ray (1 to 2 views, both knees) cost in Wisconsin — 33 hospitals, median $315.48
Knee X-ray (1 to 2 views, both knees) cost in Iowa — 28 hospitals, median $238.20
Knee X-ray (1 to 2 views, both knees) cost in Michigan — 27 hospitals, median $340.12
Knee X-ray (1 to 2 views, both knees) cost in Indiana — 26 hospitals, median $417.60
Knee X-ray (1 to 2 views, both knees) cost in Georgia — 25 hospitals, median $271.13
Knee X-ray (1 to 2 views, both knees) cost in Washington — 25 hospitals, median $264.48
Knee X-ray (1 to 2 views, both knees) cost in New Jersey — 23 hospitals, median $97.54
Knee X-ray (1 to 2 views, both knees) cost in New York — 23 hospitals, median $104.19
Knee X-ray (1 to 2 views, both knees) cost in Arizona — 22 hospitals, median $100.98
Knee X-ray (1 to 2 views, both knees) cost in Kentucky — 22 hospitals, median $458.40
Knee X-ray (1 to 2 views, both knees) cost in Missouri — 21 hospitals, median $190.30
Knee X-ray (1 to 2 views, both knees) cost in Minnesota — 19 hospitals, median $245.45
Knee X-ray (1 to 2 views, both knees) cost in Oklahoma — 18 hospitals, median $298.65
Knee X-ray (1 to 2 views, both knees) cost in Colorado — 17 hospitals, median $1,096.39
Knee X-ray (1 to 2 views, both knees) cost in West Virginia — 17 hospitals, median $354.00
Knee X-ray (1 to 2 views, both knees) cost in North Carolina — 15 hospitals, median $216.65
Knee X-ray (1 to 2 views, both knees) cost in Nebraska — 13 hospitals, median $231.84
Knee X-ray (1 to 2 views, both knees) cost in Oregon — 13 hospitals, median $177.75
Knee X-ray (1 to 2 views, both knees) cost in Kansas — 11 hospitals, median $493.35
Knee X-ray (1 to 2 views, both knees) cost in Mississippi — 11 hospitals, median $96.76
Knee X-ray (1 to 2 views, both knees) cost in South Carolina — 11 hospitals, median $257.50
Knee X-ray (1 to 2 views, both knees) cost in Arkansas — 10 hospitals, median $271.70
Knee X-ray (1 to 2 views, both knees) cost in Maine — 7 hospitals, median $332.00
Knee X-ray (1 to 2 views, both knees) cost in South Dakota — 7 hospitals, median $313.60
Knee X-ray (1 to 2 views, both knees) cost in Alaska — 5 hospitals, median $506.22
Knee X-ray (1 to 2 views, both knees) cost in Nevada — 4 hospitals, median $421.69
Knee X-ray (1 to 2 views, both knees) cost in North Dakota — 4 hospitals, median $188.00
Knee X-ray (1 to 2 views, both knees) cost in Wyoming — 4 hospitals, median $221.76
Knee X-ray (1 to 2 views, both knees) cost in Hawaii — 2 hospitals, median $161.28
Knee X-ray (1 to 2 views, both knees) cost in Maryland — 2 hospitals, median $106.80
Knee X-ray (1 to 2 views, both knees) cost in Montana — 2 hospitals, median $182.40
Knee X-ray (1 to 2 views, both knees) cost in New Mexico — 2 hospitals, median $253.68
Knee X-ray (1 to 2 views, both knees) cost in Louisiana — 1 hospitals, median $110.24
Knee X-ray (1 to 2 views, both knees) cost in New Hampshire — 1 hospitals, median $393.95

Knee X-ray (1 to 2 views, both knees) prices at hospitals

See every published price for Knee X-ray (1 to 2 views, both knees): the full national range, the state and hospital breakdowns, and which hospitals charge the least.

Knee X-ray (1 to 2 views, both knees) cost — see all prices →

Sources

RadiologyInfo (RSNA/ACR): X-ray (Radiography) - Bone (opens in a new tab, leaves healthcosts.net)
MedlinePlus: Bone x-ray (opens in a new tab, leaves healthcosts.net)
Wikipedia (opens in a new tab, leaves healthcosts.net)

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