X Rays and Pregnancy – What Should You Know?

For a long time it has been considered that X-rays and pregnancy isn’t such a good idea. This is why some of the women won’t even consider having an X-ray during their pregnancy. However there are some situations when women should really consider agreeing to the procedure.

X Rays and Pregnancy

When to think about pregnancy and X-rays

Usually women have an X-ray even before they find out that they are pregnant and the babies turn out to be healthy. Also you should consider having the procedure in case the benefits outweigh the risks. Sometimes women agree to it to have peace of mind.

Considerations regarding X-rays during pregnancy

The two most important issues of an X-ray are the location of the X-ray and the period of time for which you are exposed to the rays.

Information about X-rays and pregnancy

According to official information, if you have an X-ray right before you get pregnant, there is no risk for you or the baby. If you have the procedure 3-4 weeks after conception below 10 Rads the chances are minimal for the baby to be affected. However over this limit you could have a miscarriage.

During weeks 5-10 if you have X-rays between 5-10 Rads it is said that the effects on the baby are so subtle that clinically they cannot be detected. If the dose is over 10 Rads, the procedure could cause malformations to the little one. The higher the dose is, the more serious the malformations will be.

If you are thinking about rays and pregnancy later, between weeks 11-17, the effects are again so subtle at the 5-10 Rads dose that the effects may not be noticed. Officials say that it is possible for the IQ of the baby to be damaged over 10 Rads, and this damage increases with the dosage.

Between weeks 18 and 27 you shouldn’t have problems with X-rays while being pregnant below the dose of 10 Rads. At such doses not even the IQ of the baby will be damaged. Once you get past the 28th week of pregnancy the risks to the baby are of about the same as the risks to the mother.

If the dose used is below 5 Rads it is said that there are no risks to the mother or the baby in case of rays and pregnancy. The good news is that the X-rays that you need at a dentist’s office or for a broken bone only have small doses of radiation. The truth is that there is need for about 20 X-rays to reach 5 Rads.

Questions

Before having the X-ray for pregnant women there are some questions that you should ask your doctor: is there any other kind of test that doesn’t require an X-ray and what if you don’t have the X-ray.

Now you know more about X-rays and pregnancy.

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