Boston Personal Injury Attorney Blog
Radiation Burns Resulting from X-rays
Few injuries are as painful and complicated as burn injuries. In addition to being difficult to endure and tend to, severe burns leave victims with permanent scars.
Sometimes even well-meaning medical procedures can cause burn injuries. This has been known to happen when x-ray equipment is misused.
The History of Radiation Burns Resulting from X-rays
X-rays were first discovered and used in medicine during the period of 1896 to 1904 and their use continues to be of interested today. A master’s thesis written in 2016 by Benjamin James Ford of Salem State University covered the history of X-ray burns.
Developed over a century ago, x-rays were a new and somewhat baffling technology at the time. Their miraculous ability to produce pictures of bodily areas previously unknowable led most doctors to dismiss claims of their potential danger. For some time, it was widely believed these radiation burns were in fact caused by something other than the x-rays themselves.
Of course, science has long since proven that prolonged exposure to any type of radiation can result in severe damage to living cells.
Routine X-ray Procedures Can Cause Radiation Burns
X-ray burns are a type of radiation burn. Radiation burns occur as a result of excessive exposure to electromagnetic radiation, either as sunlight, x-rays, or a nuclear explosion.
These types of burns are unique in that they don’t require physical contact with a substance. Rather than combustible matter or harmful chemicals, powerful energy itself causes the skin to burn. This kind of injury can even penetrate into the DNA of skin cells, resulting in permanent damage.
Although rare, even routine x-ray procedures have occasionally resulted in radiation burns.
Lawyers That Understand Radiation Burns Caused by X-Rays
At Jeffrey Glassman Injury Lawyers, our lawyers understand the physical pain and psychological trauma that often accompanies burn injuries. We’re here to take care of the legal matters that you shouldn’t have to worry about during your recovery.
Contact us today for a free consultation.
Sources:
https://medical-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/radiation+burn
Ford, Benjamin James, “The Burning Question: Early U.S. Radiology and X-Ray Burns, 1896-1904” (2016). Graduate Theses. 21. http://digitalcommons.salemstate.edu/graduate_theses/21 Retrieved May 2nd, 201