Is a CT scan safe during pregnancy?

A CT scan (computed tomography scan or CT scan) is a technique used medically to get images of certain body parts or for special diagnostic purposes. Traditionally, it was carried out on the head, say after a stroke, neck, breast, lungs, arteries (Angiography), abdomen or pelvis, among others.

A CT scan uses low risk radiation and may be performed on other areas of the body in a pregnant woman. However, although it does not pose any risk to the mother or baby, a pregnant woman should still opt for other tests such as ultrasound or magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), that do not use x-rays. If the abdomen or pelvis is not being imaged, as is the case with a chest or head CT, there is no risk to the baby from radiation but still one usually avoids CT scans altogether during the first three months of pregnancy when there is formation of new organs.

Illness can happen at any time requiring a CT scan during pregnancy and fortunately, the amount of radiation used in normal CT imaging has never been shown to cause harm to an unborn child or the mother. However, usually, doctors will recommend a CT scan after six weeks of pregnancy.

Why is my voice so deep?

When I talk to people on the phone, they keep referring to me as sir yet I am a woman. What can I do? Margaretta

Dear Margaretta

During puberty, boys’ voices deepen while those of women get a higher pitch. For boys, this is because apart from the enlargement of the voice box (what is seen as Adams apple in men) the vocal folds in the box become longer and thicker as a response to the increase in the male hormone testosterone at puberty. For women who have only low levels of testosterone, there is a less significant enlargement of the voice box hence the high-pitched sound.

Boys whose voices remain high pitched (Puberphonia) suffer lots of name calling from peers apart from stresses of fearing to be called a woman. Likewise, women who are known to have high pitched sound can get stressed by getting a deep voice, especially during menopause when women are already stressed by menopausal symptoms.

 It is true both female and male voices change over time but this is most noticeable in women whose voices deepen because of hormonal changes associated with menopause. 

Both men and women have male and female sex hormones except in men male hormones preponderate and vice versa in women. With menopause the female hormones fall drastically creating a relatively higher amount of testosterone risking breaking of the voice and chin hair among other masculine symptoms.

Menopausal women often suffer from dryness and thinning of many body tissues because of loss of collagen and muscles mass which may also affect the vocal cords making them less flexible leading to a husky man’s voice. This can be worsened by smoking cigarettes or even a pipe (mindi) common at this time done to alleviate stress. Smoking affects the vocal cords which become inflamed, dry and thicker leading to a deeper male like voice.

It is important to avoid smoking, have lots of fluids and enough rest to ease deepening of the voice but it is very important to know that voice changes are common with age in both men and women and therefore like any ravages of age may be difficult to avoid.