Rethinking Patient Shielding in Dental Radiography

The foundation to justify radiographic imaging is that the diagnostic benefit far outweighs the radiation-associated risks. With this in mind, dental professionals have used various approaches to minimize patient radiation exposure such as the use of selection criteria, beam collimation, fast receptor systems, and patient shielding.¹ Thyroid and gonad shielding during dental radiography are long-standing practices introduced more than 70 years ago.²

With technological advances, radiation doses from dental radiographs have significantly decreased.³ Scientific investigation has provided further clarity on the magnitude of risk for radiation-induced effects.^4-6 Considering these changes, several expert organizations have re-evaluated the protection offered by shielding and challenged its use.^3,7,8

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* References and figures can be found in the original article via the link above.