To: Brumar89 who wrote (578952 ) 8/1/2010 8:25:16 PM From: J_F_Shepard Read Replies (1) | Respond to of 1588198 Really? How's this from the best healthcare system in the world...nytimes.com "When Alain Reyes’s hair suddenly fell out in a freakish band circling his head, he was not the only one worried about his health. His co-workers at a shipping company avoided him, and his boss sent him home, fearing he had a contagious disease. Enlarge This Image Hair loss in patients who received radiation overdoses. The Radiation Boom A Test Turns Dangerous Articles in this series examine issues arising from the increasing use of medical radiation and the new technologies that deliver it. Previous Articles in the Series » Multimedia Audio & Photos The Mark of an Overdose Enlarge This Image Monica Almeida/The New York Times, bottom H. Michael Heuser lost clumps of hair and had other problems after receiving a radiation overdose at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles. Mr. Heuser, a 52-year-old executive producer of films, received CT perfusion scans after exhibiting stroke symptoms. Enlarge This Image Gary Tramontina for The New York Times, bottom Suzanne Sloan also suffered hair loss after receiving a CT perfusion scan at a hospital in Huntsville, Ala. Ms. Sloan, a fifth- grade teacher, began to piece together what had happened to her after seeing a photograph in a newspaper of someone who had experienced the same distinctive hair loss. Readers' Comments Share your thoughts. * Post a Comment » * Read All Comments (156) » Only later would Mr. Reyes learn what had caused him so much physical and emotional grief: he had received a radiation overdose during a test for a stroke at a hospital in Glendale, Calif. Other patients getting the procedure, called a CT brain perfusion scan, were being overdosed, too — 37 of them just up the freeway at Providence Saint Joseph Medical Center in Burbank, 269 more at the renowned Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles and dozens more at a hospital in Huntsville, Ala. The overdoses, which began to emerge late last summer, set off an investigation by the Food and Drug Administration into why patients tested with this complex yet lightly regulated technology were bombarded with excessive radiation. After 10 months, the agency has yet to provide a final report on what it found. But an examination by The New York Times has found that radiation overdoses were larger and more widespread than previously known, that patients have reported symptoms considerably more serious than losing their hair, and that experts say they may face long-term risks of cancer and brain damage. The review also offers insight into the way many of the overdoses occurred. While in some cases technicians did not know how to properly administer the test, interviews with hospital officials and a review of public records raise new questions about the role of manufacturers, including how well they design their software and equipment and train those who use them. The Times found the biggest overdoses at Huntsville Hospital — up to 13 times the amount of radiation generally used in the test. Officials there said they intentionally used high levels of radiation to get clearer images, according to an inquiry by the company that supplied the scanners, GE Healthcare. Experts say that is unjustified and potentially dangerous. “It is absolutely shocking and mind-boggling that this facility would say the doses are acceptable,” said Dr. Rebecca Smith-Bindman, a radiology professor who has testified before Congress about the need for more controls over CT scans. Yet because the hospital said no mistakes were made, regulatory agencies did not investigate. The F.D.A. was unaware of the magnitude of those overdoses until The Times brought them to the agency’s attention. Now, the agency is considering extending its investigation, according to Dr. Alberto Gutierrez, an F.D.A. official who oversees diagnostic devices. Patients who received overdoses in Huntsville say that in addition to hair loss, they experienced headaches, memory loss and confusion. But at such high doses, experts say, patients are also at higher risk of brain damage and cancer. A spokesman for Huntsville Hospital, which now acknowledges that some patients received “elevated” radiation, said officials there would not comment.