Time: 2024-07-23
Patients who receive higher cumulative doses of radiation from CT imaging do have higher death rates from prior disease than those who receive lower doses , but nearly one - third to half still remain alive a decade later , researchers have found . The study conducted by Maria Mataac and colleagues at Massachusetts General Hospital ( MGH ) in Boston offers a correction to the assumption that patients who undergo many CT exams may already be too ill for clinicians to be concerned about radiation risk . The findings were published on 14 July in the European Journal of Radiology.
Mataac 's group categorized 36,545 patients who had CT exams in 2013 into four cumulative effective dose groups . They found that death rates for all dose groups peaked in the year of imaging or a year after . Group D had 6.7 times and Group C had 4.3 times the death rate of Group A one year after imaging . However , a significant number of these patients were still alive after 10 years , with 48 % in Group C and 36.7 % in Group D. Survival rates in patients undergoing repeated CT exams over 10 years by radiation dose showed that nearly one - third to half remain alive a decade after their CT scans , potentially facing the effects of radiation.
The study highlights the importance of radiation protection for patients who have multiple CT exams . Mataac and colleagues concluded that despite patients receiving relatively higher doses being more likely to die within the first two years of receiving such doses , nearly one - third to half remain alive a decade after their CT scans . This knowledge may help policymakers and practitioners make informed decisions regarding radiation risk in Medical imaging . The research emphasizes the need for continued evaluation of radiation risk in patients undergoing CT scans to ensure their safety and well - being.
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