Dental radiology and pregnancy
Is a dental CT scan safe during pregnancy?
With few exceptions, radiation exposure through radiography, computed tomography (CT) scan, or nuclear medicine imaging techniques is at a dose much lower than the exposure associated with fetal harm..
Is dental radiography safe during pregnancy?
The amount of radiation used in a dental X-ray is very low and, according to both the American Dental Association and the American Pregnancy Association, is not enough to cause any harm to a pregnant woman or her baby.Jul 25, 2018.
Is radiology safe during pregnancy?
If your doctor thinks an X-ray is truly needed during your pregnancy — for your own well-being or your baby's — it's very unlikely that the low levels of X-ray radiation used will be harmful..
What is the pregnancy policy for radiology?
A pregnant worker can continue working in an X-ray department as long as there is reasonable assurance that the fetal dose can be kept below 1 mGy during the pregnancy.
It is important to ensure that pregnant women are not subjected to unnecessary discrimination..
- Depending on the stage of fetal development, the health consequences of exposure at doses greater than 0.
- Gy can be severe, even if such a dose is too low to cause an immediate effect for the mother.
The health consequences can include growth restriction, malformations, impaired brain function, and cancer.
- Elective treatments, such as teeth whitening and other cosmetic procedures, should be postponed until after the birth.
- With few exceptions, radiation exposure through radiography, computed tomography (CT) scan, or nuclear medicine imaging techniques is at a dose much lower than the exposure associated with fetal harm.
Radiographs are considered safe for the pregnant patient, at any stage during pregnancy, when abdominal and thyroid shielding is used. Dental professionals who take radiographs should inform their employer in writing that they are pregnant as soon as they are aware of the pregnancy.
The amount of radiation used in a dental X-ray is very low and, according to both the American Dental Association and the American Pregnancy Association, is not enough to cause any harm to a pregnant woman or her baby.
Does pregnancy affect dental health?
Pregnancy may affect dental health and, compared with the negligible radiation risk to the foetus from dental X-rays, failure to provide the patient proper care and diagnostics for possible dental problems is much more harmful to the foetus
What do dental care professionals need to know about pregnancy?
The dental care professionals must gain a basic understanding of the underlying physiological changes of pregnancy, the influences which are related to the use of medications during gestation ,and how these may interact with the delivery of dental care
Why is dental radiography important during pregnancy?
Dental radiography is unique in that the number of radiographs taken is so large that it will always include those patients who are unaware of their pregnancy
After learning of the pregnancy, they may become concerned about the effects of the X-ray procedure on their unborn child
The amount of radiation produced by dental x-rays today is minimal, and the fetus will not be exposed at all. In fact, the American Dental Association (ADA) and the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) have determined that they are safe for everyone, including children and pregnant women.The FDA, the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG), and the American College of Radiology (ACR) are all in agreement on the safety of dental x-rays during pregnancy. In 2017, they released a joint publication which said that x-rays performed on the teeth and mouth do not expose reproductive organs to direct radiation.The risk to the foetus from a few µSv of radiation exposure arising from a dental radiographic procedure is extremely small. The cancer risk to the unborn child resulting from a 10 µSv foetal dose is several thousand times less than the background risk of childhood cancer.According to the American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP), dental x-rays are generally safe during pregnancy. Still, controversy is generally prevalent in the literature surrounding this issue due to radiation exposure's elusive results. Hence, after studying the high radiation exposure in pregnancy, such x-rays are not recommended.
