Occupational Exposure In Radiology

When most people think of hospitals, they picture a community that puts safety first for their patients and healthcare professionals. But, that's not 100% true. For health care providers who work in the radiology field they are continuously getting exposed to radiation and have to be very cautious with how much they receive. “Radiology is the science dealing with X-rays and other high-energy radiation, especially the use of such radiation for the diagnosis and treatment of disease.” In 1895 Röntgen discovered the X-ray, instantly people put much interest into the machine. Little did Röntgen know that he had found something that would change the way the medical field worked. X-rays work by being projected through the body onto a detector; an image is formed
based on which rays pass through (and are detected) versus those that are absorbed or scattered in the patient (and thus are not detected). It wasn’t until around the 1920s that they realized that the radiation being produced by the x-ray was actually harmful and was causing health issues to those who had gotten x-rays. Even though they now have safety guidelines to prevent excess exposure in one sitting, people can still have an impact on their health if they get exposed to too much overtime. So this leads me to the question, how is radiation helping cure yet killing us at the same time? Patients exposed to radiation in high amounts are more likely to develop cancer in the future. Yet, having radiation procedures can help doctors see what is going on internally when there is pain, monitor the progression of diseases, and how prescribed treatments are working.
To understand if X-rays are dangerous, we need to first know how radiation exposure can harm people.
Excessive doses of radiation can eventually cause cancer. This is because the radiation can cause a change in the cell’s chemical balance, which then can leads to cancer in the future. That is why it is very important to make sure that everybody receives the least amount of radiation possible. The impact of radiation doesn’t go away once you leave the machine, it can add up throughout your lifetime. So somebody who has had multiple scans with small doses could have the same impact as someone who has had one scan with a big dose. In the article, Occupational Exposure and Adverse Effects in the Radiologic Interventional Setting, Walden states that, “ An increased incidence of cataracts, cancer, and diseases, such as nonmalignant thyroid nodular disease and parathyroid adenoma, correlate with long-term radiation exposure.” (Walden 460). This is showing us that not only can people in this work field develop cancer but they can also receive many other dangerous side effects. Healthcare workers in the Radiologic field need to be extra careful to make sure they don’t develop a side effect from the excess
exposure.
Not only can radiation cause cancer, but it can also affect our future generation. If you are pregnant and go to get an x-ray you could be putting your baby in danger. This is because the fetus is protected in the uterus, a radiation dose to a fetus tends to be lower than the dose to its mother for most radiation exposure events. However, the fetus is very sensitive to radiation, and the health consequences of exposure can be severe, even at radiation doses too low to immediately affect the mother. Such consequences can include growth retardation, malformations, impaired brain function, and cancer. In the article, Radiation Exposure in Pregnant and Nonpregnant Female Interventional Radiology Workers, they write, “Defects can occur at levels of 100 mSv to 200 mSv, with more severe problems occurring after higher exposures. With a dose of 100 mSv, the increase over background incidence for organ malformation and the development of childhood cancer.” (Long 576). This is showing us that radiation in pregnancies can have consequences. Although 100 mSv is a high dose for just one scan, doses can be added up throughout time, and it’s best that future risks are avoided. Not only should you worry about reproductive organs when your pregnant. But It’s also important to use a lead shield to protect reproductive organs when you're a male or female because reproductive cells divide rapidly, and these areas of the body can be easily damaged at rem levels as low as 200 mSv. In the Long-term, some radiation sickness victims will not be able to reproduce.
Not only can radiation exposure have big impacts on our health, it can also have small side effects. When people are exposed to around 40 mSv by their eyes, they can develop cataracts. “Cataracts are a medical condition in which the lens of the eye becomes progressively opaque, resulting in blurred vision.” Even though you can develop Cataracts, there are treatments where you can get rid of them. But that doesn’t mean that it shouldn’t be taken lightly. The eyes are the most sensitive to radiation. Another type of an small impact radiation can have is the blood white cell count will be reduced, leaving the victim more susceptible to infection. This is often referred to as mild radiation sickness. Early symptoms of radiation sickness mimic those of flu and may go unnoticed unless a blood count is done. Unless many white blood cells are removed it’s not a big problem and new blood cells will quickly come and take their place. Another problem radiation can have is having skin burn. In mild conditions it will just come off like a sunburn, but for more extreme cases the skin will be even more red and blister.