Patient Safety

HPRA is committed to quality, accurate reads and are actively involved in understanding and weighing the benefits and risk of our imaging procedures. We encourage our patients and physicians to review the section entitled “Patient Safety”.

Generally, radiation doses from imaging exams are relatively small and the clinical benefit of an exam far outweighs the risks. According to the Environmental Protection Agency, most people in the United States receive an annual radiation dose of about 360 millirem (used to measure radiation); 80% of that is from natural sources such as elevation, soil, rocks, radon gas, human bodies, or plane trips. Imaging procedures typically account for the remaining 20%. The typical chest x-ray is comparable to taking a flight from Charlotte to Los Angeles.

The descriptions below outline some common imaging procedures and the radiation risks associated with them; while we provide examples of comparable risks, each modality’s radiation dosage varies by study (imaging the head vs. the chest, etc.).

MRI – Magnetic Resonance Imaging does NOT use radiation to image patients. There is no radiation risk involved in this study.

Ultrasound (US) – US does NOT use radiation to image patients. There is no radiation risk involved in this study.

X-ray – A mild dose of radiation is used to perform this study; chest x-ray is comparable to a cross country plane trip.

Mammogram – A mild dose or radiation is used to perform this study. The radiation risk is similar to the annual radioactivity naturally produced by the average person’s body.

CT – A Computed Tomography scan requires more radiation than an x-ray, however it also provides a more detailed picture. The clinical benefit for diagnosis may outweigh the radiation risk; patients and their referring physician should consider the risks and benefits before proceeding with a CT study (i.e. what is the risk of not having the CT; is there alternate way to diagnosis, etc). Total radiation exposure varies greatly by procedure; a typical Chest CT is comparable to the radiation exposure from radon gas annually emitted in the average home.

PET – Positron Emission Tomography uses small amounts of radioactive materials which are injected and target the area of the body being pictured. The radiation risk varies by procedure.

Nuclear Medicine Scans – Nuclear medicine scans use small amounts of radioactive materials which are either injected, swallowed or inhaled to help target the area of the body being pictured and diagnosed. The radiation risks are similar to that of an x-ray.