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Ionising radiation in diagnosis: do the risks outweigh the benefits?
Author(s) -
Roebuck Derek J
Publication year - 1996
Publication title -
medical journal of australia
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.904
H-Index - 131
eISSN - 1326-5377
pISSN - 0025-729X
DOI - 10.5694/j.1326-5377.1996.tb122275.x
Subject(s) - medicine , radiological weapon , intensive care medicine , test (biology) , risk analysis (engineering) , surgery , paleontology , biology
Every diagnostic test in medicine has costs and potential benefits. Doctors must ensure that the benefits of each test performed outweigh the costs, which include financial considerations and risks to the health of the patient. The possible adverse effects of some invasive tests such as biopsies may be well understood, but for others the risks are not so obvious or immediate. Seemingly “non‐invasive” tests involve the use of ionising radiation and carry the risk of causing malignant tumours. This risk is widely underestimated in medical practice in Australia, and it is the responsibility of the radiological community to demonstrate that commonly performed investigations result in a net benefit to patients.