If a dental X ray procedure has been performed on a pregnant woman, what is the risk to the foetus and what advice may be provided?
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. The risk of inducing a genetic abnormality is an even smaller fraction of the background risk of genetic disorder. Hence patient doses received in the normal practice of dental radiology would never warrant consideration of a termination, and patients with concerns in this regard should be counselled accordingly.
