Media Spin on Dental X-Rays

For the past couple of months, every dentist in the United States has had to deal (in some form or another) with the story on the front page of the Cleveland Plain Dealer newspaper entitled, “Dental X-rays Linked to Brain Tumors in Yale Study”. The story made national headlines, and why wouldn’t it with a title like that?
The reporter did publish excerpts from a meeting with ADA (American Dental Association) spokesperson Matthew J. Messina, DDS to get the dental communities’ perspective; however that was published on page A-4. As Dr. Messina explained, “Like a courtroom trial, the prosecution went first. Page 1 included the first six paragraphs of the article. The ADA’s defense was well presented, but after the ‘jump’ to page A-4. It required that a person be committed enough to understanding the story, to be willing to actually open the paper and read the article to the end. And that is one of the problems that ‘we’ will always face as a profession.”
For the rest of us who don’t live in Cleveland, or read the Cleveland Plain Dealer on-line, we got our story from the national news media. All I heard was that dental x-rays cause brain tumors. As a consumer and someone concerned about my health it raised an eyebrow. As a dentist I knew there was more to the story.
Here are the facts as presented by Dr. Messina:
How common are the brain tumors? (Six per 100,000) How did the researchers find a link between dental x-rays and brain tumors? (They asked people with brain tumors to remember how many x-rays they had over their lifetime) Is there a problem with this type of study? (Yes, it’’ called “recall bias”) Are dental x-rays different today than they were even 10 years ago? (Yes, the amount of radiation in current dental radiography is dramatically less than in years past) What should patients do with this information? (Talk to their dentist about any concerns so that their dentist can give them accurate information and reassure them)
While there is strong evidence that ionizing radiation may cause cancer, the question remains whether low doses lead to an increase in risk. Regarding dental x-rays, the effective dose is far below the yearly exposure received from natural background radiation. In the case of brain tumors, the cerebral (brain) region is not even in the primary radiation field of most dental x-rays. This was not even considered in the study.
Where do we go from here? If you are in the approximately 50% of the population that does not see a dentist on a regular basis, this information does not mean that much. If you are in the other 50% that understand that oral health means so much more than having your teeth cleaned or a tooth filled, I would recommend the ALARA rule (as low as reasonably achievable). Dental radiographs are a safe, essential and effective tool in identifying dental decay, gum disease, pathology, as well as monitoring proper growth and development.
As a society it is my hope that we are willing to move past the skimming of all the information that is available to us and ask questions when things relate to us. We (dentists) as a profession will continue to work towards educating our patients and providing the safest, most effective care.