The 2009 National Council on Radiation Protection and Measurements, Report No. 160 — Ionizing Radiation Exposure of the Population of the United States — showed that medical exposure to patients is one of the largest sources of radiation exposure to Americans, nearly equaling the exposure from background sources. Computed tomography is the largest source of medical radiation exposure.

The benefits of computed tomography are immense and certainly exceed the risks. However, this is only true when they are ordered appropriately and studies are optimized to obtain the best image quality with the lowest radiation dose. And be sure to take the pledge to Image Wisely!