For some kids, parent fears mean too many CT scans
White children are more likely to receive cranial (head) CT scans in the ER after minor head trauma, compared with African-American or Hispanic children, according to new research.
As earlier studies have shown, children who get two or three CT scans before age 15 triple their risk of developing brain cancer and triple their risk of developing leukemia if they get five to 10 scans, though the overall risk is low.
“In many instances, doctors appear to be responding to parental anxiety rather than medical evidence,” says lead author JoAnne E. Natale of University of California, Davis.
Full story at Futurity.
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