I found out I was pregnant after a chest X-ray.

Chest X-ray is an examination that also produces a certain amount of radiation. There is no problem for normal people to do it, but for some pregnant women, if pregnancy is detected after a chest X-ray, they need to consider whether it will cause harm to the body. Generally, if frequent visits to the chest X-ray room for abortion are needed in the future, whether the fetus can be preserved still depends on the patient's medical condition.

Everyone knows that you should be careful to avoid all kinds of radiation in the early stages of pregnancy, but what should a pregnant mother do if she has had an X-ray before realizing she is pregnant?

In fact, many doctors don’t even know that the effect of medication within one month of pregnancy on the fetus is an all-or-nothing effect. In other words, if the baby is affected, then miscarriage will definitely occur. If there are no signs of miscarriage, then the medication will have no effect on the fetus. The same is true for X-rays during early pregnancy.

1. I found out I was pregnant one month after the chest X-ray

For Xiao Xu, this is the biggest regret in his life. Xiao Xu has been preparing to get pregnant for more than half a year. Last month, she suddenly gained a good appetite and became lazy. It just so happened that the unit organized a routine inspection. The day before the inspection, the unit leader kindly reminded that pregnant women were not allowed to undergo chest X-rays. At that time, Xiao Xu was not sure whether she was pregnant, so she thought about getting the check-up first, as it would be a waste if she didn't do it.

However, the misfortune was caused by her carelessness. Less than a month after the chest X-ray, Xiao Xu was diagnosed as pregnant, and the young couple were both overjoyed. But before the joy had worn off, Xiao Xu began to have vaginal bleeding. She rushed to the hospital for a check-up and found out that she had miscarried at seven weeks of pregnancy. Xiao Xu and her husband underwent a full body examination before becoming pregnant and did not find any abnormalities. So what was the reason?

After the doctor's questioning, Xiao Xu finally realized that it was the chest X-ray examination that caused the problem. Chest X-ray is an X-ray examination, and X-rays may damage and deform egg cells, leading to miscarriage, fetal death in utero, and fetal malformations. In real life, there are many women who have undergone X-ray examinations before pregnancy, or who continue to undergo examinations even after knowing they are pregnant. This may cause fetal malformation, miscarriage, stillbirth, etc., and may even increase the risk of cancer in children 10 years later.

In this regard, experts remind women who are planning to get pregnant that it is best to wait three months or six months before getting pregnant after undergoing X-ray examinations such as chest X-ray, CT, or mammography (a type of breast examination).

2. “All” or “No” Effect on the Fetus

So, for women like Xiao Xu, who were not pregnant before the chest X-ray, or whose pregnancy had not been confirmed, and only found out they were pregnant after the chest X-ray, do they not want to keep the baby in this case?

In this regard, the doctor explained that the baby's fertilized egg has not yet implanted and started to divide and develop within one month of pregnancy, so the effect of taking medicines during this period on the fetus is an all-or-nothing effect. In other words, if the baby is affected, then miscarriage will definitely occur. If there are no signs of miscarriage, then the medication will have no effect on the fetus. The same is true for X-rays taken before pregnancy. If Xiao Xu's baby is affected by X-rays, then the baby will inevitably suffer a miscarriage; if Xiao Xu does not suffer a miscarriage in the early stages of pregnancy, it means that the baby is not affected by X-rays, and there is no need to worry about the baby's organ development and other problems.