Radiology is an essential component of dental diagnosis. Available data clearly show that ionizing radiation, if delivered in sufficient doses, may produce biological damage. However, it is not clear that radiation in doses required for dental radiography presents any risk. Neither is it clear that these small doses are free of risk. The practitioner may reasonably expect that the health benefit to the patient from dental radiographic examination will outweigh any potential risk from radiation exposure provided that: • the dental radiographic examination is clinically indicated and justified • the technique is optimized to ensure high-quality diagnostic images • the principles outlined in this Report are followed to minimize exposure to the patient,.
