HealthWise KnowledgeBase
Spinal X-Ray
Risks
There is always a slight risk of damage to cells or tissue from being exposed to any radiation, including the low levels of radiation used for this test. But the risk of damage from the X-rays is usually very low compared with the potential benefits of the test.
For example, the radiation exposure from a chest X-ray is about equal to the natural radiation exposure received during a round-trip airline flight from Boston to Los Angeles (or Montreal to Vancouver) or 10 days in the Rocky Mountains (Denver, Colorado).
| By: | Reference Healthwise Staff | Last Revised: Reference March 2, 2011 |
| Medical Review: | Reference William H. Blahd, Jr., MD, FACEP - Emergency Medicine
Reference Howard Schaff, MD - Diagnostic Radiology |
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