Worried over radiation exposure CT scans

[CoconutGirI]

I'm currently pregnant and after passing out at the weekend I went to hospital to check my baby was ok. I felt fine afterwards and was able to talk, have a conversation / walk / make decisions for myself. I could recall the before and after surrounding the event.
I do often have low blood pressure and am pre diabetic. I dont know what my blood glucose was but they did find glucose in urine. When I went to hospital they ordered a ct scan. I refused. They then sent someone to talk to me again and I was told if I didn't have the ct scan to be deemed well enough then they wouldn't check my baby was ok.
I sat there the whole day and was so stressed out my bp and hr were really high due to this. ( as soon as baby was checked it came right down) I told them I didn't want it but felt they more or less cornered me and felt blackmailed into having this scan against my wishes otherwise I wouldn't get to check my baby was ok after fainting. I was out for around a minute. They kept banging on about amnesia surround the event. I don't know what the hell they are talking about because I told them what I was doing before and after . How would anybody remember what happened while they were out cold? For some random reason they were obsessed with blood clots / bleeding on the brain.
I'm now so worried that I've had the ct scans as I was told there's absolutely no risk to my baby and I've since read this is not true. Radiation scatters and a small amount may pass to the baby and the contrast also passes into placenta. I've read this can increase the risk to cancer to myself, which I was never told and also increases rhe risk my baby may develop cancer as they are so young and more subseptible and that it can possibly cause birth defects/ brain development issues. They actually gave 2 scans which I wasn't aware of. One without contrast and then one with contrast. Doesn't that mean I've been exposed to two separate doses of radiation ? I've read the more scans I have the more I'm at an increased risk if cancer and I just cant help shake that fear that I've exposed me and my baby to excess radiation when it was something I made clear I wasn't comfortable with. My scan was clear but now I'm suffering from intense anxiety and stress thinking I'm going to get cancer and any effects for my unborn baby. I'm aware it's all around us but I've it's the unnecessary exposure that's now built up in my cells I'm concerned about. I've never had xrays before, pay attention to ingredients, avoid the sun ect to protect myself as best as I can but now I just feel doomed . I've read cancer can show in as little as 2 years and I'm worried how ill look after my baby if I develop cancer or if something happens to my baby. I just feel I need to vent as I don't know where to turn to. I am at the point I can't sleep properly and I feel the stress is going to kill me quicker than anything that possibly could have been wrong with me

I had a chest scan with the radiation when I was 36 weeks pregnant with my son, as they thought I had a blood clot. He's now 11 and healthy as they come. Try not to worry OP.

Listen to the medical professionals. If the benefits of a procedure outweigh the risk then they will advise it.

@lavendermouse thankyou . It's so hard not to worry when everything I've read says it shouldn't be performed in pregnancy until absolutely necessary and I felt they pushed the scan before exploring and ruling out other causes first

YABU

Are you lost?? AIBU is that way. Take your (un)helpful posts there. Best wishes to you, OP.

You are getting ahead of yourself by assuming it will give you can cancer down the line. It was clinically recommended to rule out serious acute conditions which could affect both you and your baby. Speak to your mw about this and your anxiety as unless it is controlled better now it will get worse as pg progresses and with the arrival of the baby,

Being concerned is fine, but don't worry! Modern xrays use MUCH less radiation than the old (pre-1990 days) when all the warnings were created and they just continue for liability purposes but the levels are so minor so as not to need to worry - take it someone who had over 100 hundred x-rays between 1970-1990!

From Cancer.org:
How much radiation is given off by X-rays?
For instance: A single chest x-ray exposes the patient to about 0.1 mSv. This is about the same amount of radiation people are exposed to naturally over the course of about 10 days. A mammogram exposes a woman to 0.4 mSv, or about the amount a person would expect to get from natural background exposure over 7 weeks.
How many years of radiation is a CT scan?

By comparison, the radiation exposure from one low-dose CT scan of the chest (1.5 mSv) is comparable to 6 months of natural background radiation, and a typical CT scan of the chest (6.1 mSv) is comparable to 2 years of natural background radiation (1).8 Feb 2024

Thankyou for your replies. I think what hasn't helped spark my concern is the fact my dentist wanted to give me a dental xray 2 weeks ago and I said no and told him I'm pregnant and then he said he wouldn't perform the xray on me because I'm pregnant anyway ? and a dental xray only has minimal radiation , but obviously enough that he was skeptical of it and so do general xrays they are extremely low whereas ct scans have much higher radiation than xrays and worry because they took two ct scans few minutes apart

Again, understandable about the concern but the dentist is also being way overly cautious mostly because there is no reason not to be as the gain is so minimal. CTs are higher but again, 6 months of normal exposure at once, so not huge in the scheme of things and they are not wide-focus so as to include the fetus, so just you and again, minimal. Breathe and enjoy the pregnancy as much as you can - and CONGRATULATIONS! Concern is admirable, but please don't worry/obsess and if you really need expert reassurance talk with your GP, obstetrician, radiologist or other trusted professional.

@CoconutGirI I went through something similar very recently (two abdominal/pelvic CT scans with isolation in 4 days due to appendicitis). I didn't know the risks either. I'm hoping to conceive in the next few years, and some of the research online is so scary! I've read some of the same things you mentioned. It sounds like the other posters who have been through this were okay, and so were their children. It's easy for me to wind myself up when I care passionately about an outcome; seems like you might be the same way? I'm going to try making some chamomile tea and watching music videos of bands I like. Maybe there are things you can try to help yourself feel better? You don't deserve to feel worse when you've already been through so much. I wish you lots of good luck!

@bodymind I’ve been through something similar recently and I’m now so concerned about my future. Some of the research online is so scary :(

@Golden24 It really is. I'm trying to think positively - maybe these scans helped save my life. It may be a different life than I expected or hoped for, but it can still be great! Plus, it's probably better for our health to not add more stress :) I hope you feel better soon!

A clot on the brain could kill ot cause permanent disability which is the reason you had the brain CT scan. On the other hand, your dentist clearly thought the X-ray could wait. It's all about risk and benefit. Are you going to deny yourself an epidural if you really need it because a small amount of fentanil does get to the baby? (very small amount).

A head CT really isn’t anything to worry about I promise- it’s very low dose these days. Whether it was indicated or not is hard to know without being there. Sometimes it’s tricky because a pregnancy service will want you “cleared” medically before checking the baby as you may be moved to a different department and honestly if there is a long wait they should be coming down to see you in ED (easier said than done often).

Even for CT chests the risk is more to your breasts than the baby and I would only really strongly try and avoid an abdo/pelvis CT and even then if it’s really needed it’s really needed (but would expect a consultant involved in that decision). All scans should be on a risk benefit basis whether you are pregnant or not- we just need to be extra careful and deliberate in that decision making when there is a pregnancy.

dental X rays can wait so they will.

Please don’t worry about a CT head- it’s honestly going to be such little risk to your baby. Even the quoted risks for chests are much higher than for Ct head.

Yes it's a risk benefit analysis for the CT. The doctors would have taken all the risks into consideration. Dentists do take X-rayon expectant mothers, again if the benefit outweigh the risk.

Glad you and baby are ok.