Repetitive radiation exposure from using X-ray imaging may put us at danger of developing tissue damage. Practitioners who employ imaging are exposed to radiation on a much more frequent basis and run a larger risk of tissue damage than the average person. Frequently asked issues concerning lead glasses are addressed in this article.
What is Lead Glasses?
Radiation protection for your eyes is provided by wearing lead glasses. Wearing lead glasses during medical imaging procedures is strongly advised in order to prevent any major dangers to the patient’s health.
Medical professionals call lead glasses by a variety of distinct names. You can also call them:
You can also call them:
- X-ray goggles.
- Radiation goggles.
- Led eyewear.
- X-ray lead glasses.
- Radiation goggles.
- Radiation-protection goggles.
- Radiation-protection eyewear/glasses.
Where lead glasses are mostly used for?
During medical and diagnostic imaging procedures such as fluoroscopy, computed tomography, and radiography, lead glasses function as radiation shields for your eyes. Operating rooms, catheter laboratories, radiology, medical imaging, dentistry clinics, and veterinary clinics all need the use of lead-based safety goggles.
Is there any danger to the eye from radiation exposure?
Cataracts are the most prevalent side effect of recurrent ocular radiation exposure. When the normally clear lens of your eye becomes clouded, you have a cataract. It is common for cataracts to grow over a long period of time. In addition, radiation dosages may not cause immediate symptoms, thus it is important to have enough protection.
What is the ideal thickness for lead glasses?
Yet, the lens of the eye is the most radiation-sensitive portion of the human body, thus wearing lead glasses is a must. In order for lead aprons to be safe, they must be at least 0.25 mm thick on both the front and rear.
How many types of lead glasses are available?
Lead eyewear comes in three main varieties, each with varying degrees of protection.
Wraparoudn: As the name suggests, this kind of lead glasses provides a “wraparound” level of protection for both front and side of the eye. Depending on the curvature of these frames, extra side shield protection is frequently unnecessary.
Semi-wraparound: Glasses with a semi-wraparound design shield the wearer’s eyes from both sides. Additional lateral shielding is often provided by the installation of leaded side shields.
Flat frame: These frames are excellent for a wide range of prescriptions and scripts. However, just the front of the body is protected. Leaded side shields may be fitted to flat leaded glasses frames with side shields if you choose for that style of eyewear.
What is lead equivalence for lead glasses?
Checking the leaded lens’s lead equivalency (LE) is the most significant aspect in determining how much protection the leaded lens provides. The Australian Radiation and Nuclear Protection Association (ARPANSA) has issued a number of guidelines for eye protection against radiation. They advise the use of side shields and lead glasses equivalent to 0.75mm lead (Pb) to provide appropriate radiation protection.
What will happen if I don’t wear any lead glass?
In certain situations, cataracts caused by ionizing radiation are distinct from those that form over time as a normal part of aging. Radiation may cause cataracts in several ways, but the exact process that causes them is still a mystery to researchers.
Even in a research where radiology technologists had an average 30-year career, eye protection is important since a radiology tech relies on their eyes to conduct their work. In the event of exposure-induced cataracts, surgery will be required to remove them, and the implications might be dire.
What are the different types on lenses available for lead glasses?
One might choose between single vision, lined bifocal, and progressive bifocal prescription lenses (progressive lenses). Rx lenses may not be available for all frame types.
Final thoughts
X-ray radiation may have a long-term impact on your health and well-being if you don’t take the proper precautions to protect yourself and your eyes.
Many hospitals and other medical organizations do not supply their medical workers with lead glasses, or thyroid shield for radiation protection despite the fact that radiation may cause damage to the body and eyes when it is unprotected. This is problematic. In most hospitals, patients are given lead aprons as a safety precaution. Due to this, lead glasses aren’t normally required radiation protective gear.