Barium Shield to Protect the Fetus During CT Scans

Computed tomography (CT) on a pregnant woman's chest puts the fetus at risk owing to the adverse effects of radiation. However, researchers from the University of Chicago propose that it may be possible to protect the fetus if the mother ingests barium sulfate before CT radiation exposure. Because the fetal dose during chest scans is mainly due to internal scatter of incident radiation, the barium compound acts as an internal shield that absorbs errant radiation. A study that simulated a CT scan of a pregnant woman showed that ingesting a 40 percent solution of barium sulfate would decrease the fetal dose to a negligible level, so that even high-quality CT imaging could be performed with minimal risk. Chester Reft (773-702-6873) presented data from the study and discussed the potential for barium sulfate internal shields at this week's meeting of the American Association of Physicists in Medicine in San Diego (Paper WE-C23A-4)