Radiation and women of child bearing potential

BMJ 1995;310:1022-1023 (22 April)

Editorials

Radiation and women of child bearing potential

Moves to revive the "10 day rule" may be premature

The "10 day rule" recommended that, in women of child-bearingpotential, non-urgent x ray examinations that entailed pelvicirradiation should be restricted to the first 10 days of themenstrual cycle. Its rationale was to avoid irradiating a fetusbefore the mother realised that she was pregnant. In 1984, however,the International Commission on Radiological Protection reportedthat there was little, if any, risk of damaging the fetus duringthe first two weeks of gestation--that is before the first periodwas missed.¹ The National Radiological Protection Board issuedadvice based on this statement,² and the College of Radiographersand Royal College of Radiologists followed up with their jointguidelines.³ Since then, for examinations in which the uteruswill be within or close to the irradiated area, radiographersand radiologists ask patients if there is any chance that theymay be . . . [Full text of this article]