Although there have been significant improvements in prevention in the treatment of many medical conditions, cancer rates remain surprisingly high and may soon surpass heart disease as the leading cause of death in the United States. According to a recent editorial in the New York Times, (by Dr. Rita Redberg and Rebecca Smith-Blindman) many experts believe that a major cause in these statisics may be related to the over use of medical imaging with high dosages of radiation. The resulting exposure in medical radiation has increased more than six fold between the 1980’s and 2006, according to the National Counsel of Radiation Protection and Measurements. The radiation doses of CT Scans are 100 to 1,000 times higher than the conventional x-rays.

Although there is no dispute that the use of medical imaging can make a lifesaving diagnosis, there is also evidence of the relationship between radiation and the development of cancer. A single CT Scan can expose a patient to the amount of radiation that Epidemiologic evidence shows could be cancer-causing.

These risks have been demonstrated directly in large clinical studies in Britain and Australia. In the British study, children exposed to multiple CT Scans were found to be three times more likely to develop Leukemia and Brain Cancer. A 2011 report, sponsored by the Susan G. Komen, Institute of Medicine, concluded that radiation from medical imaging, and hormone therapy, the use of which has substantially declined in the last decade, were the leading environmental causes of breast cancer. They advised women to reduce their exposure to unnecessary CT Scans.

CT Scans once rare are now routine. One in ten Americans undergo a CT Scan every year, and many of them get more than one. This increase is a result of multiple factors including a desire for early diagnoses, higher quality imaging technology, direct to consumer advertising and the financial interest of doctors and imaging centers.

CT Scanners cost Millions of Dollars; having made that investment purchasers are strongly incentivized to use them. Therefore, if you or a close family member are involved in an automobile accident or other trauma, which requires you to receive emergency room treatment, it is important that the emergency room physicians be advised that they are not authorized to order routine multiple CT Scans before they meet or even examine the patient. Such practices usually provide no evidence of benefit and should be avoided.

Patients should be advised, before agreeing to a CT Scan, whether it will lead to better treatment and outcome. They can ask whether the treatment prescribed requires this testing. Any alternatives that do not involve radiation, like ultrasound or a MRI, should also be discussed.

Although the use of CT Scans are still an important arsenal in the diagnostic tools available, they should not be used unnecessarily. These scans can expose patients to unnecessary levels of radiation which may in fact cause more harm than the condition which the CT was ordered to diagnose.

If you or a close family member have any questions regarding the appropriate medical care and treatment that you should receive following an automobile accident or trauma due to another’s, please call Attorney Gary Sernaker at (858) 509-0188 or email him at Gsernaker@gmaill.com

Mr. Sernaker has been representing trauma victims for over 30 years and will be able to answer your questions regarding the appropriate medical care that you should receive for the injuries sustained.