A comprehensive review of the literature on the biological effects from dental X-ray exposures

Abstract

Purpose: Routine dental X-rays are among the most common sources of ionizing radiation exposure for healthy individuals globally, with 300 examinations/1000 individuals/year as documented by the United Nations Scientific Committee on the Effects of Atomic Radiation (UNSCEAR) global survey of medical radiation usage and exposure. Furthermore, in the United States of America, an increased use of dental radiography is evident. However, with the shift from using film to digital image receptors, the dose of radiation per routine examination has decreased. Despite this, there remains public concern of dental X-rays. This continuing concern highlights the need to review the literature on biological and health effects related to exposure, from dental X-rays. Material and methods: This report presents studies investigating biological and health effects related to exposures using dental X-rays in patients and provides a critical evaluation. Relevant studies specific to dental X-rays are reviewed from 1970 and onward with the bulk data in this field resulting from epidemiological and biomonitoring studies. Results: While, most epidemiological studies suggest a possible correlation between head/neck related tumors and exposure to dental X-rays, evidence for causation is lacking. Biomonitoring studies suggest that exposure to low-level radiation such as that of dental radiography may not be a factor in inducing long-term chromosomal damage, but may result in localized cytotoxicity in the irradiated region of the mouth, with no long-term harm. Conclusions: In general, the total number of studies is low and the majority of the data has been generated from poorly designed experiments. This review will highlight shortcomings that could influence outcomes and provide a more balanced interpretation that could impact the public perception and the level of public concern on the health effects resulting from dental X-rays.

Biological effects of electron beam to target turning X-ray (EBTTX) on two freesia (Freesia hybrida) cultivars

“…Currently, EBTTX has been widely used in the fields of food, medicine, physics, and materials, etc., but it is rarely reported in the breeding of ornamental plants. ( Gautam & Tripathi, 2016 ; Chauhan & Wilkins, 2018 ). Therefore, we hypothesise that EBTTX radiation has the potential to breed new freesia varieties by altering the morphological and physiological parameters of the plants.…”

Biodosimetry of Low Dose Ionizing Radiation Using DNA Repair Foci in Human Lymphocytes

“…Exposure of general population with low-dose ionizing radiation has tremendously grown in recent years. In particular, these exposures occur at airport security checks and in medical examinations such as mammography, computed tomography, dental X-ray exposures and angiography [5,[20][21][22][23][24]. Biological dosimetry of low doses represents an important issue for radiation protection and prediction of possible health effects including cancer risks [25].…”

Evaluating the Effect of Working in the Dental Radiology Center on Micronucleus Frequency in Buccal Mucosa

“…For MN counting, cells that were characterized by specified margins and nuclei were used, and the MN count was not performed in areas where the cells overlapped. Dead or degenerated cells and nuclear bubbles were also excluded from counting (22).…”