Radiation Exposure to the Interventional Echocardiographers and Sonographers: A Call to Action
Interventional echocardiography is a rapidly growing field with the disciplines of cardiology and anesthesiology, with the rise of advanced transcatheter procedures making skilled imagers more important than ever. However, these procedures also involve frequent manipulation of the transesophageal echocardiography (TEE) probe, which means interventional echocardiographers (IE) are at risk of long-term occupational radiation exposure. Studies have shown that radiation exposure is linked to various health issues, including cancer, cataracts, hypertension, hyperlipidemia, endothelial dysfunction, vascular aging, and early atherosclerosis.