Patient Safety in Radiology (2025)-Radiation Risk: What you should know to tell your patient

Radiation Risk: What you should know to tell your patient

Video Transcription

Video Summary

Dr. Mahesh from Johns Hopkins discusses radiation risk communication with patients, focusing on understanding radiation dose descriptors, effective dose estimation, and uncertainties in excess cancer risk. He explains biological effects of radiation—stochastic (delayed, e.g., cancer) and deterministic (acute tissue damage). Effective dose estimates whole-body risk from partial exposures across imaging modalities (radiography, fluoroscopy, CT). He emphasizes large sample sizes needed to statistically assess low-dose risks and notes epidemiologic limitations below 10 millisieverts. Risks from diagnostic radiation are generally low compared to natural cancer risk but should always be justified and optimized. Patients should understand doses are estimates, not precise individual measurements.

Keywords

process mapping

radiology workflows

workflow optimization

quality improvement

team collaboration

radiation risk communication

effective dose estimation

biological effects of radiation

diagnostic radiation risks

epidemiologic limitations