x-ray...too much = harmful?

[UW09]

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I was wondering if getting like 5 x-rays on each side in one day is harmful in any way.

 

[drhobie7]

If we're talking dental radiographs on D or E speed film, then no. That equals a few days of background radiation exposure, the kind you get from just walking around outside.

 

[aphistis]

I was wondering if getting like 5 x-rays on each side in one day is harmful in any way.

I hope not. Any new patient who sits down to see me can pretty much count on getting 10 on each side. 😛 I'm starting to like FMX films a lot more now that I can delegate them to a hygiene student while I see a second patient.

But drhobie is right. Dental radiography deals with pretty tiny radiation exposures, no more than you'd get from a few days of ordinary environmental exposure. Compare that to a head CT, for example, which gives you nearly a whole year's worth of environmental exposure just for a single study.