The Food and Drug Administration has announced that it would take steps to more stringently regulate three of the most potent forms of medical radiation, including CT scans, some of which deliver the radiation equivalent of 400 chest X-rays. In making the announcement, the FDA said it hoped to reduce unnecessary radiation exposure from three medical imaging procedures: CT scans, which provide three-dimensional images; nuclear medicine studies, in which patients are given a radioactive substance and doctors watch it move through the body; and fluoroscopies, in which a radiation-emitting device provides a continuous internal image on a monitor, the New York Times reports.
