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Increase in CT scans for children brings radiation danger

Children are far more vulnerable to radiation exposure than are adults:

• Children’s organs are more sensitive to radiation than adults’ organs.
• Children have a longer life expectancy than adults, giving cancer a longer time to form.
• Radiation settings often may not be set to match children’s body size.
• Because CT use is increasing, children may eventually receive a higher lifetime dose of medical radiation……..

As Kids’ CT Scans Rise, So Do Radiation WorriesMore Kids Getting More Scans at ERs, but Few See Pediatric Radiologists By Daniel J. DeNoon WebMD Health News Reviewed by Laura J. Martin, MD April 6, 2011 — Emergency CT scans for kids are on the rise — and so are worries that too many children are getting too much radiation too early in life.

“We found that abdominal CT imaging went from almost never being used in 1995 to being used in 15% to 21% of visits in the last four years of [our] study,” Children’s Hospital of Cincinnati researcher David B. Larson, MD, MBA, says in a news release…..

Children are far more vulnerable to radiation exposure than are adults:

• Children’s organs are more sensitive to radiation than adults’ organs.
• Children have a longer life expectancy than adults, giving cancer a longer time to form.
• Radiation settings often may not be set to match children’s body size.
• Because CT use is increasing, children may eventually receive a higher lifetime dose of medical radiation……..

What can parents do? According to the Radiological Society of North America, parents should talk with the doctor ordering a pediatric CT scan — or with the radiology physician — about:

• Whether the scan will result in a clear medical benefit.
• Using the lowest amount of radiation based on the child’s size.
• Scanning only the area of the body indicated by the child’s symptoms.
• Avoiding multiple scans.
• Using alternative imaging techniques such as ultrasound or MRI.

As Kids’ CT Scans Rise, So Do Radiation Worries

April 7, 2011 - Posted by Christina Macpherson | 2 WORLD, health