Recently, the British medical journal The Lancet carried an article stating that the more CT scans children receive, the greater their chances of getting leukemia and brain tumors. In estimating radiation doses, researchers found that children under the age of 15 who had two to three scans of their heads had a three-fold increased risk of brain cancer compared to the general population. The researchers also found that having five to 10 scans would also triple the risk of developing leukemia. This article immediately aroused a great deal of attention from parents, so can CT exams still be done or not? This morning, the reporter interviewed Dr. Yuan Xinyu, director of the Department of Radiology at the Capital Institute of Pediatrics, who reminded parents not to refuse necessary CT scans, especially for head and spinal injuries, pneumonia complications, chest infections, etc., because these diseases can endanger the lives of sick children and radiation scares are unnecessary. What is CT? Uncertainty of injury Don’t be afraid What is CT?Director Yuan Xinyu first explained that CT exams are like a large donor circle into which patients enter and X-rays are irradiated around to obtain tomographic images of the body, which can also reconstruct three-dimensional structures. X-rays are an electromagnetic wave that penetrates very well, so it has the potential to break through DNA strands in cells as it passes through the body, causing abnormal DNA strand repair. It also has an ionizing effect, causing ionization of body components and causing damage to the body. Common imaging tests for children include taking chest and abdominal films, bones of the limbs, CT of the head, and CT of the chest and abdomen. This kind of radiation is divided into two kinds, one is certainty damage, acute large doses of radiation in a short period of time, such as a nuclear leak. There is another kind of uncertainty damage, no expected value, and the damage caused by the CT used in medicine now is of this kind. The dose of radiation currently used for medical diagnosis is quite low and very safe. CT is not good? Questioned by the industry heavy words “The Lancet” in the statement has long been, but in the industry has been widely questioned, the results of this study was published, the American College of Radiology soon issued a statement, the results do not mean that children to completely abandon CT scans, in some cases it is still a very necessary diagnostic method. According to Director Yuan Xinyu, the researchers did not know the reasons why the children surveyed received CT scans, and the survey did not follow the principles of random sampling and control methods, so the results of the study can only be considered observations. “Just like smoking can cause cancer, can you say that smoking must cause cancer? There are non-smokers who get cancer, and it is the same thing with CT in children.” Director Yuan said, “There is no definite relationship between this, it’s just a statistical concept.” Director Yuan also said that there are many parents of children in the clinic who worry about the radiation of CT, and some parents even ask, “Do you need to take a bath after CT? “In fact, the radiation dose for medical diagnosis is very small, the parents of children do not need to worry, where also use the bath, is simply two different things.” Why take a CT? Necessary medical means Reasonable use Director Yuan Xinyu stressed that since the Fukushima nuclear leak in Japan last year, people have more awareness of radiation, and the radiation currently used for medical diagnosis is quite safe, parents do not have to worry. “CT scans are an absolutely necessary medical tool, for example, to quickly show head trauma after an accident. Only now we have to be careful to ensure that there is a valid reason for each scan. Any other kind of diagnostic tool that does not expose children to X-rays should be considered whenever possible.” Director Yuan said. Currently, less than 10 percent of CT exams are used for other imaging exams in the Capital Institute of Pediatrics. And it is necessary to use CT to understand some human lesions, such as suspicion that the child has a brain tumor, tuberculosis or abscess in the lungs. “Some parents now have a radiation scare, which is not necessary. As medical workers, we are aware of the nature of X-rays and the doses used for children are within safe limits, so don’t worry about the necessary CT exams.” Director Yuan said. Remind parents that some diseases are not necessary to take CT However, medical experts also remind patients: it is better to do CT examinations with caution, preferably not more than 2 times in a year, and at most not more than 4 times. There are some diseases for which CT should not be the first choice for diagnosis, such as suspected appendicitis in children, which should be examined first with ultrasound. In addition, ultrasound and plain X-ray are better for patients with stomach disorders, liver, gallbladder and kidney stones. What CT cannot do Difficult to show lesions in the posterior cranial fossa, especially the brain stem Cannot clearly show cerebral aneurysms, arteriovenous malformations and occult cerebrovascular malformations, especially cavernous hemangiomas Difficult to show cerebral infarcts that are too small Cerebral hemorrhage remnants and old cerebral infarcts are both hypointense on CT, making it difficult to distinguish them