Radiation Protection in Dental Office-A Review

The discovery of X rays by Sir Wilhelm Conrad Roentgen 1895 in Wurzburg, was the beginning of a revolutionary change in our understanding of the physical world. Health physics is concerned with protecting people from the harmful effects of ionizing radiation while allowing its beneficial use in medicine. Radiography as an has become an inseparable part of medical health care. This tool uses ionizing radiation which can harm both human and environment. It is used for both diagnostic as well as therapeutic purposes. As a diagnostic tool it has to be used with caution and ethics. Dental fraternity uses radiographs more alarmingly when compared to other medical specialist to diagnose and to know the treatment outcome. The more commonly used radiographs are intraoral periapical radiographs.