Occupational radiation and pregnancy: reality or disinformation? A review of the literature and summary of current clinical guidelines.

Exposure to ionizing radiation is a decisive factor in women's choice of entering the field of interventional radiology. This issue explains the low percentage of women in interventional radiology and the high number of women who take leave from work when they are pregnant even though they have no problems with their pregnancy. The current guidelines and legal framework regarding pregnancy and ionizing radiation from different national institutions are not in line with the scientific evidence. They establish recommendations based on disinformation and a need to protect the fetus that has not been scientifically validated. Lack of knowledge and lack of evidence-based information could contribute to gender-based inequality at work. This article reviews the evidence from the articles and clinical guidelines in PubMed, paying special attention to publications from the last five years (2015-2020). Additionally, it reports the results of an online survey of healthcare professionals exposed to radiation in their work.