🦷0.005 mSv
Dental X-Ray (Intraoral)
Radiography
Used by dentists to see teeth and jawbone. Extremely low dose.
- Eq. background
- 1 day
- Eq. flights
- Less than 1 flight
Tool 01
Medical Dose Explorer
Every scan has a price in radiation, and every price has context. Browse common procedures, add them to a profile, and see what the combined dose actually means for the body.
Procedures
🩻0.1 mSv
Chest X-Ray
Radiography
A standard diagnostic X-ray of the chest. It uses a very low dose of radiation.
- Eq. background
- 10 days
- Eq. flights
- 3 flights (NY to LA)
🎗️0.4 mSv
Mammogram
Radiography
Low-dose X-ray imaging of the breast used for screening.
- Eq. background
- 7 weeks
- Eq. flights
- 12 flights (NY to LA)
🧠2 mSv
CT Scan (Head)
Computed Tomography
A detailed 3D image of the brain and skull. Higher dose than standard X-rays.
- Eq. background
- 8 months
- Eq. flights
- 60 flights (NY to LA)
🫁7 mSv
CT Scan (Chest)
Computed Tomography
Detailed imaging of lungs, heart, and chest wall.
- Eq. background
- 2 years
- Eq. flights
- 200 flights (NY to LA)
🧍10 mSv
CT Scan (Abdomen & Pelvis)
Computed Tomography
Comprehensive imaging of abdominal organs. One of the higher dose common procedures.
- Eq. background
- 3 years
- Eq. flights
- 300 flights (NY to LA)
📺15 mSv
Interventional Fluoroscopy (Avg)
Fluoroscopy
Continuous X-ray beam used to guide medical procedures such as catheter placement. Dose varies greatly by procedure time.
- Eq. background
- 5 years
- Eq. flights
- 450 flights (NY to LA)
☢️25 mSv
PET/CT Scan
Nuclear Medicine
Combines metabolic activity imaging (PET) with anatomical imaging (CT). Involves injected radiotracers.
- Eq. background
- 8 years
- Eq. flights
- 750 flights (NY to LA)
What is a millisievert (mSv)?
The sievert measures the health effect of ionising radiation on the body. Medical procedures use tiny amounts, so we speak in millisieverts — thousandths of a sievert. Natural background gives most people about 3 mSv a year.
The ALARA principle
Healthcare works to ALARA — As Low As Reasonably Achievable. Imaging is done when it is medically needed, at the lowest dose that still produces a usable picture.
Dose effects scale
Normal / Negligible
0–3 mSv
Typical annual background radiation from natural sources (radon, cosmic rays). No observable health effects.
Low
3–20 mSv
Average occupational limit is 20 mSv/year. Very minor theoretical increase in lifetime cancer risk based on the LNT model.
Moderate
20–100 mSv
100 mSv is the lowest annual dose where epidemiological studies show a statistically significant increase in cancer risk.
High (No Acute Sickness)
100–1000 mSv
Increased long-term cancer risk. Blood cell changes may be observed, but no immediate radiation sickness.
Severe (Acute Effects)
1000+ mSv
Acute Radiation Syndrome (ARS). Nausea, vomiting, bone marrow depletion. Doses above 4000 mSv without treatment are often fatal.