Effect of Radiations on Mother and Fetus?

Radiations and pregnancy

Radiations and pregnancy:

The term "radiation" refers to a type of energy. It moves through the air as rays or particles. Radiation can bind to things such as dust, powder, and liquid. These materials have the potential to become radioactive, which means they emit radiation.

Nearly every day, you are exposed to (come into touch with) little levels of radiation. This radiation is emitted by both natural (sun rays) and man-made sources (like microwave ovens and medical X-rays). These types of radiation aren't harmful in any way. However, in the event of a radiation emergency, such as a nuclear power plant disaster, you may be exposed to higher, more deadly levels of radiation. This could endanger both you and your child.

The chances of an X-ray during pregnancy harming your unborn child are quite slim. In most cases, the diagnostic information obtained from an X-ray outweighs the risk to a fetus. However, if you had a lot of abdominal X-rays in a short period of time before you found out you were pregnant, your kid might be damaged. Most X-ray tests, such as those of the legs, head, teeth, or chest, will not expose your reproductive organs to the direct X-ray beam, and you can wear a lead apron to shield yourself from radiation scatter. Abdominal X-rays are an exception, as they expose your belly — and your baby — to the direct X-ray beam. The danger of injury to your baby is determined by the gestational age of your child and the amount of radiation he or she is exposed to. A miscarriage could occur if a woman is exposed to exceptionally high-dose radiation in the first two weeks after fertilization.

Two to eight weeks after conception, high-dose radiation may raise the risk of fetal growth limitation or birth abnormalities. Between weeks 8 and 16, there's a chance you'll have a learning or intellectual handicap. However, the normal dose of single diagnostic X-ray exposure is significantly lower than the high dose associated with these problems.

Tell your doctor if you are or may be pregnant before obtaining an X-ray. It may be feasible to postpone or adjust the X-ray to lower the amount of radiation, depending on the conditions. Furthermore, if you have a child who requires an X-ray, do not hold your child during the scan if you are pregnant or may become pregnant.

Talk to your doctor if you received a diagnostic X-ray before you found out you were pregnant.

How to protect yourself and your baby from radiation?

Before getting an X-ray or other radiation-based testing, such as computed tomography, tell any health care professional you see, including your dentist, that you're pregnant (also called CT or CAT scan). CT scans produce images of the inside of your body using specialized X-ray equipment and powerful computers. The majority of X-rays are safe to have while pregnant. If you're pregnant and need an X-ray or CT scan of your abdomen, your doctor may advise you to wait until your baby is delivered, adjust the test to limit the amount of radiation, or use ultrasound instead. You and your doctor can decide on the best treatment for you.

Talk to your manager if you work with radiation at your job. Inform him that you are expecting a child. You might be able to adjust your employment responsibilities during pregnancy to help keep you and your baby safe.

Enter the building. Get to the center of a building or the basement, away from windows and doors. Bring your pets inside with you.

Stay in the house. Windows and doors should be closed and locked. Shower or use a moist cloth to wipe any exposed areas of your body. Drink bottled water and eat food that has been sealed.

Keep an eye out for updates. Get up-to-date information from local officials using radios, televisions, computers, and mobile devices?

Tell your health care provider right away if you think you've been exposed to a lot of radiation.

Follow these suggestions from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) if you've been in a radiation emergency and may have been exposed to substantial amounts of radiation:

 How do radiations affect you and your baby?

During pregnancy, your body shields your baby from the majority of the radiation you are exposed to on a daily basis. The majority of kids born to mothers who were exposed to modest levels of radiation during pregnancy do not have an elevated risk of birth abnormalities. A birth defect is a health problem that a baby has at the time of birth. Birth defects alter the appearance or function of one or more body parts. They can have an impact on one's overall health, how the body develops, and how the body functions.

If you consume or inhale radioactive material while pregnant, it can enter your bloodstream and go to your baby via the umbilical cord. It can also accumulate in bodily parts adjacent to your uterus (womb), such as your bladder. The amount of radiation your body absorbs, the type of radiation it is, and the length of time you are exposed to it all have an impact on your baby. Between the ages of two and eighteen weeks of pregnancy, your baby is most vulnerable to radiation. Radiation exposure during pregnancy can cause

Your baby's growth should be slowed.
Result in birth defects
Affect the development of your baby's brain
Induce cancer in your child

This will result in a miscarriage. This is when a baby dies in the womb before reaching the 20-week mark of pregnancy.

It is uncommon to be exposed to enormous doses of radiation, equivalent to more than 500 chest X-rays all at once. After the atomic bombs were detonated on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945, it happened to women in Japan. You may not feel sick if you come into touch with huge amounts of radiation, but the radiation may create serious complications in your baby.

Extremely high doses of radiation, equivalent to more than 5,000 chest X-rays in one sitting, are also uncommon. It happened to ladies in the 1986 Chornobyl nuclear power plant disaster in Ukraine. If you are exposed to exceptionally high levels of radiation, you may have symptoms of radiation sickness, such as:

Vomiting,

 Diarrhea,

 Bloody feces are all symptoms of a stomach bug.

Fever

Tiredness (being really tired)

Hair loss is a common problem.

If you think you've been exposed to a lot of radiation, get in touch with your doctor right once.

Radiation exposure in pregnancy:

The annual background radiation exposure for the total body in the United States is estimated to be 3.1 mSv (310 mrem). Total fetal exposure during pregnancy should be less than 5.0 mSv, according to the United States Nuclear Regulation Commission (USNRC) (500 mrem). Fetal radiation exposure of less than 50 mGy is deemed safe and will not harm the fetus. Radiation doses of 50 mGy to 100 mGy are considered inconclusive in terms of influence on the fetus, according to the Center for Disease Control (CDC). Based on observation, dosages above 100 mGy, particularly those above 150 mGy, are regarded as the lowest level of dosage at which detrimental fetal repercussions will occur.