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19 June 2013

Answer to Question #4615 Submitted to "Ask the Experts"

Category: Radiation Effects — Medical and Dental Radiation

The following question was answered by an expert in the appropriate field:

My six-year-old niece underwent a chest x ray 10 days ago as it was prescribed by her doctor due to her four-week-old cough. She was exposed again this morning as this was again advised by the same doctor. What would be the harmful effect of this double exposure to radiation through the chest x rays she underwent in less than a month period?

There is no measurable risk from two chest x rays. This means that the risk, if it exists at all, is too small to measure. The average radiation exposure to all Americans has been determined by the National Council on Radiation Protection and Measurements to be 3 millisieverts per year from natural sources. This excludes all man-made radiation, from nuclear power, nuclear weapons, medical, etc. A chest x ray adds a radiation dose equivalent to a few hours of this natural background radiation. There is no evidence that doses in this range are harmful to patients of any age.

Conclusion: There is no reason for concern about your niece's chest x-ray exposure.

S. Julian Gibbs, DDS, PhD

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