For residents & fellows

Understand the C-arm.
Read every angiographic view.

Rotate a 3D C-arm around a patient and watch the fluoroscopy monitor update in real time. Learn what LAO, RAO, cranial and caudal really mean, why each standard view exists, and how to recognise them on the screen.

Start with the basics → Open the simulator

Drag the sliders or tap a standard view. Left panel: the cath lab in 3D (drag to orbit). Right panel: what you'd see on the monitor.

The course

MODULE 1

C-arm basics

Anatomy of the C-arm, the naming convention, and how to orient yourself on the monitor.
MODULE 2

Free-play simulator

Full controls: rotate, angulate, switch coronaries, inject contrast, toggle anatomy colours.
MODULE 3

Standard views

The ten workhorse projections, what each one shows best, and the tricks for recognising them.
MODULE 4

Name that view

Test yourself: identify the projection from the angiogram, or dial in the right angles.

The one rule to remember

Every projection is named for where the detector (image intensifier) is relative to the patient — never the X-ray tube.

  • LAO: detector over the patient's left chest.
  • RAO: detector over the patient's right chest.
  • Cranial: detector tilted toward the head.
  • Caudal: detector tilted toward the feet.
Two quick reads off any image: where's the spine? (LAO → screen right, RAO → screen left). Can you see the diaphragm? (yes → probably cranial).

How to use this site

  1. Read C-arm basics once — 10 minutes.
  2. Walk through each standard view and orbit the 3D room so the geometry clicks.
  3. Hit the quiz until you can name views from the spine and diaphragm alone.
  4. Before your next case, rehearse the sequence of shots in the simulator.