This site is intended for healthcare professionals

Sign in
Go to /sign-in page

You can view 5 more pages without signing in

X-ray (exposure to ionising radiation)

Last reviewed dd mmm yyyy. Last edited dd mmm yyyy

Authoring team

Diagnostic examination effective doses (mSv)

  • single x-ray
    • skull (PA and lateral) (0.04)
    • limb or joint (0.06)
    • chest (PA) (0.02), chest (lateral) (0.04)
    • abdomen (0.7)

  • contrast examination, x-ray series or CT
    • cervical (0.27), thoracic (1.4), lumbar (1.8) series
    • intravenous urogram (2.5)
    • barium enema (7.0)
    • CT abdomen (10)

Notes:

  • data reveal that the lumbar spine series has 90 times and a joint x-ray 3 times the radiation dose of a posteroanterior (PA) chest x-ray

  • the average background annual absorbed dose in the UK is around 2.5 mSv (equivalent to 125 PA chest x-rays)

  • an abdominal computerised tomography (CT) scan (500 frontal chest x-ray equivalents) in a teenager is thought to raise the lifetime risk of inducing haematological malignancy to 1 in 1000

Reference:

  • 1) Arthritis Research UK (Summer 2013). Hands on - Musculoskeletal imaging for GPs.

Related pages

Create an account to add page annotations

Create a free account

Annotations allow you to add information to this page that would be handy to have on hand during a consultation. E.g. a website or number. This information will always show when you visit this page.

The content herein is provided for informational purposes and does not replace the need to apply professional clinical judgement when diagnosing or treating any medical condition. A licensed medical practitioner should be consulted for diagnosis and treatment of any and all medical conditions.

Connect

Copyright 2024 Oxbridge Solutions Limited, a subsidiary of OmniaMed Communications Limited. All rights reserved. Any distribution or duplication of the information contained herein is strictly prohibited. Oxbridge Solutions receives funding from advertising but maintains editorial independence.