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An estimated 72 million computed tomography (CT) scans were performed in the U.S. in 2007. Two research groups assessed radiation dose from CT scans and future cancer risk.
Smith-Bindman and colleagues studied CT scans performed at four hospitals (private and public, large and small) in San Francisco in 2008. For each of 11 types of CT studies, the researchers estimated the effective dose of radiation, which takes into account “the amount of radiation to the exposed organs and each organ's sensitivity to developing cancer from radiation exposure.”
The effective dose varied widely both within and between institutions for each type of CT study. The median effective dose was 2 millisieverts (mSv) for a noncontrast head CT scan and 31 mSv for an …