Skip to main content

Embryonic and Fetal Effects - Video Lesson

Hey, everybody. Welcome back. This lesson discusses the potential, embryonic, and fetal effects from radiation exposure. This subject is critically important in medical imaging. The developing embryo and fetus are extremely sensitive to radiation. Far more sensitive than adults or even children. Catastrophic effects are possible. At comparatively low doses of radiation, including the doses experienced in medical imaging. So why are the embryo and fetus so sensitive? It follows the law of Burgundy and Trebendone, which says that the most radio sensitive cells are immature term, they also tend to be unspecialized, which is the same as being undifferentiated, and they also tend to be rapidly dividing, which is the same as having a high reproductive rate. The developing embryo fetus fits all three of these conditions. The cells of an unborn