Thursday, June 21, 2012

Radiation Exposure from medical imaging drastically increasing, study finds

From:  FoxNews

It’s important for patients to know what options are available to them and whether or not certain procedures are necessary or not.
“We have to justify the use of radiation,” Smith-Bindman said. “It’s not that patients shouldn’t get radiation, but use it wisely. If a patient is going to a facility to get a CT scan, they need to know that the scan is being done in the safest way possible. [Patients need to ask,] ‘What kind of doses do you use?’ and the facilities can’t currently answer that…We need to make sure the technologists are certified and the facilities know the doses they’re using and benchmark those doses.”
 
“Everything in medicine has trade-offs,” she continued. "There’s no free bee. Often we have thought we’ll get this test and think about the results later. These really sophisticated imaging tests come with risks and benefits just like anything else in medicine.”

Some patients undergoing CT scans of the abdomen would receive anywhere from 13 mSv (millisieverts – the unit of measure for radiation) to 50 mSv.
Numerous studies have examined the link between radiation exposure and increased risk of various adverse health effects – most namely cancer. Smith-Bindman referenced a recent report published in the Lancet revealing that childhood CT scans can increase the risk of brain cancer.

“There has been no carcinogen that has been studied as much as radiation,” Smith-Bindman said. “The studies are pretty clear – high exposure to radiation causes cancer…That being said, radiation is very helpful, but we try to keep those exposures as low as possible.”
With so many studies warning against too much exposure to medical imaging radiation, Smith-Bindman theorized that people have become so accustomed to doing imaging tests that they don’t think about the adverse health effects associated with them.
“Clearly the tests are great,” Smith-Bindman said. “Partly the reason is they’re useful and show a broader range of diseases. Partly it’s because physicians and patients are so incredibly enamored with imaging. There’s a belief that any imaging is good and so patients go to their providers wanting imaging, or physicians think their patients want imaging. There’s a lot of testing when no one thinks it’s going to help the patient. Sometimes they’re just trying to see what’s going on, to appease the patient.”
However, according to Smith-Bindman, getting a CT scan or MRI is not always what a patient needs or should get. The overuse of medical scans can create problems of their own – apart from possibly causing cancer.

“There’s the possibility of over diagnosis and false positives – when you say there’s a problem when in fact nothing’s there. It takes time from a person’s life and leads to unnecessary treatment. If you’re going to order an MRI, or if you order a CT, think: ‘How is this going to help me?’”
While she does not advocate stopping the use of medical imaging, Smith-Bindman said that discretion and balance is necessary.

It’s important for patients to know what options are available to them and whether or not certain procedures are necessary or not.
“We have to justify the use of radiation,” Smith-Bindman said. “It’s not that patients shouldn’t get radiation, but use it wisely. If a patient is going to a facility to get a CT scan, they need to know that the scan is being done in the safest way possible. [Patients need to ask,] ‘What kind of doses do you use?’ and the facilities can’t currently answer that…We need to make sure the technologists are certified and the facilities know the doses they’re using and benchmark those doses.”

“Everything in medicine has trade-offs,” she continued. "There’s no free bee. Often we have thought we’ll get this test and think about the results later. These really sophisticated imaging tests come with risks and benefits just like anything else in medicine.”

Related Links:
Which doctor does your colonoscopy may matter
http://www.foxnews.com/health/2012/06/15/which-doctor-does-your-colonosc...
Proton therapy: Radiation without the side effects?
http://www.foxnews.com/health/2012/06/14/proton-therapy-radiation-withou...
After cancer, kids get too many CT scans
http://www.foxnews.com/health/2012/06/14/after-cancer-kids-get-too-many-...
Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/health/2012/06/12/radiation-exposure-from-medical...


No comments: