That’s
a fair question to ask as a patient. In some branches of health care,
such as dentistry or orthopedics, x-rays are routine and are
performed without any doubts or questions. Patients understand that
without x-rays, the dentist or orthopedic surgeon would be flying
blind, and the quality and safety of the procedure would be
compromised.
However,
in other branches of health care such as chiropractic, the use of
x-rays is debatable. In fact, the majority of chiropractors do not
take x-rays as a standard practice. So when a patient enters Premier
Chiropractic and discovers that x-rays are a standard practice for
all cases, naturally they have a few questions.
For
most patients, the questions arise from the fear of receiving too
much radiation and increasing their risk of cancer. Although that
fear is valid – excessive exposure to ionizing radiation (like
x-rays) can increase the risk of cancer – once our patients
understand the clinical need for x-rays, and the actual dosage they
receive, their fears are quickly put to rest.
Let’s
quickly address the fear of increased cancer risk first. X-rays are
form of radiant energy, like light or radio waves, but x-rays have
the ability to penetrate body. X-rays occur in nature (called
“background” radiation) and most commonly come from cosmic
radiation (space) and radioactive materials (most commonly from radon
gas). Therefore we are always exposed to them at some level. The
dosage is most commonly measured in millisieverts (mSv).
The
damage caused by x-rays is like a wound in the sense that, with time,
the body can fully heal and recover. So a large dose of radiation
from x-rays can be tolerated as long as it’s not too frequent. And
a small dose of x-rays can be tolerated on a more frequent basis. To
put things in perspective, one chest x-ray exposes a person to 0.1
mSv, which is equivalent to the amount of radiation exposure they
would experience from their natural surroundings in 10 days.
The
x-rays we take at Premier Chiropractic amount to roughly 0.5 mSv,
which is equivalent to the amount of radiation exposure you would get
from your natural surroundings in about 2 months.,
Lastly,
let’s address why we need to take take x-rays. The
bones in your spine are highly variable from one person to the next.
Just like no two people look exactly alike (except maybe identical
twins), no two spines look exactly alike. Furthermore, the uniqueness
of the individual, how they are shaped, how they move, makes it
nearly impossible analyze accurately with palpation (touch) alone.
In
summary, just as an orthopedic surgeon or dentist needs x-rays in
order to perform his or her job and provide the highest quality of
care to the patient, so do structural chiropractors at Premier
Chiropractic need to take x-rays.
When
your health is on the line, you don’t want us to be guessing do
you?
