Baby CT Scan Risks

COMPUTED TOMOGRAPHY (CT) SCAN

A computed tomography scan - also called CAT scan or CT scan - is done using a circular machine lined with cameras. The scanner rotates around the baby so that X-rays can be taken from all angles, and then a computer integrates the images to make a cross-sectional picture. Therefore a CT scan can show "slices" of the body. It uses the same basic technology as an X-ray machine, just with an added dimension.

CT can be used anytime a detailed picture of the body is required. It can image the brain, especially after a child has fallen and hit her head. It is also used to look at abdominal organs such as the appendix, liver, and spleen when certain illnesses are suspected. A baby of any age can have a CT scan.

The scanner is a machine shaped like a giant narrow donut. (It is not elongated like the MRI scanner.) The patient lies on a narrow table that slides into and out of the circle. This machine is not claustrophobic because it is not an enclosed space. Rather, only the part of the patient's body being imaged is "inside" the machine.

The older CT scanners took time to shoot the various X-rays. The newer generation scanners, however, take only seconds. This is important because
infants and young children once had to be sedated in order to have certain CT scans. Now, with the fast machines widely available, children can often lie still or suck on a bottle for 30 to 120 seconds while the machine takes pictures.

Occasionally a baby will need to have an IV placed in her arm. Then, before the pictures are taken, a liquid that will show up on the CT scan is injected into the vein. This liquid is called contrast material because it helps to show contrast between certain internal structures. Some babies also require oral contrast material, which they drink before the CT is performed.

Sometimes the CT is done immediately after the contrast is given; other times 2 to 4 hours must pass before the picture is taken. A radiologist a doctor who specializes in medical imaging will decide whether or not to use contrast and what type to use, as well as how long to wait between giving the contrast and completing the CT scan.

Some babies may have an allergic reaction to the contrast material. Reactions can range from hives to respiratory failure (anaphylaxis). Children with iodine allergy or shellfish allergy will be at increased risk for a reaction to contrast.

Just about any part of the body can have a CT image. It is a painless procedure, but there are small risks of radiation exposure. One way to think about this is in terms of normal daily radiation exposure. A single chest X-ray is equivalent to the amount of radiation a person is exposed to over a two-and-a-half-day period just walking around and living on Earth.

A CT scan, which uses multiple X-ray images, can be compared to 240 to 1,200 days of radiation exposure, depending on what part of the body is imaged. An airplane ride also exposes passengers to higher-than-normal levels of radiation. Five round-trips from Los Angeles to New York involve about as much radiation exposure as a single chest X ray.

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