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Review
. 2023 May 15;19(1):53-62.
doi: 10.4244/EIJ-D-22-00407.

Radiation protection for healthcare professionals working in catheterisation laboratories during pregnancy: a statement of the European Association of Percutaneous Cardiovascular Interventions (EAPCI) in collaboration with the European Heart Rhythm Association (EHRA), the European Association of Cardiovascular Imaging (EACVI), the ESC Regulatory Affairs Committee and Women as One

Stéphane Manzo-Silberman  1 , Maite Velázquez  2 , Sonya Burgess  3 , Sheila Sahni  4 , Patricia Best  5 , Roxana Mehran  6 , Emanuela Piccaluga  7 , Laura Vitali-Serdoz  8 , Amy Sarma  9 , Israel Moshe Barbash  10 , Josepa Mauri  11 , Piotr Szymański  12 , Lynne Hinterbuchner  13 , Giulio Stefanini  14 , Alessia Gimelli  15 , Pal Maurovich-Horvat  16 , Lucas Boersma  17 , Gill Louise Buchanan  18 , Gianluca Pontone  19 , Lene Holmvang  20 , Nicole Karam  21 , Antoinette Neylon  22 , Marie-Claude Morice  23 , Christophe Leclercq  24 , Giuseppe Tarantini  25 , Dariusz Dudek  26 , Alaide Chieffo  27
Affiliations
Review

Radiation protection for healthcare professionals working in catheterisation laboratories during pregnancy: a statement of the European Association of Percutaneous Cardiovascular Interventions (EAPCI) in collaboration with the European Heart Rhythm Association (EHRA), the European Association of Cardiovascular Imaging (EACVI), the ESC Regulatory Affairs Committee and Women as One

Stéphane Manzo-Silberman et al. EuroIntervention. .

Abstract

The European Association of Percutaneous Cardiovascular Interventions (EAPCI), the European Heart Rhythm Association (EHRA), the European Association of Cardiovascular Imaging (EACVI), the European Society of Cardiology (ESC) Regulatory Affairs Committee and Women as One support continuous review and improvement, not only in the practice of assuring patients a high quality of care but also in providing health professionals with support documents to help them in their career and enhance gender equity. Recent surveys have revealed that radiation exposure is commonly reported as the primary barrier for women pursuing a career in interventional cardiology or cardiac electrophysiology (EP). The fear of foetal exposure to radiation during pregnancy may lead to a prolonged interruption in their career. Accordingly, this joint statement aims to provide a clear statement on radiation risk and the existing data on the experience of radiation-exposed cardiologists who continue to work in catheterisation laboratories (cath labs) throughout their pregnancies. In order to reduce the barrier preventing women from accessing these careers, increased knowledge in the community is warranted. Finally, by going beyond simple observations and review of the literature, our document suggests proposals for improving workplace safety and for encouraging equity.

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Conflict of interest statement

S. Manzo-Silberman has received consulting fees from Bayer, Organon, and Exeltis; lecture fees from Bayer, BMS, Exeltis, and Organon; and has served on the adjudication board for a study for Biotronik. S. Burgess received a research a grant from Women as One for a radiation safety project (paid to her to university research fund), and has received speaker honoraria from AstraZeneca, Women as One, Pfizer, and Novartis. S. Sahni has received lecture fees from Abbott Vascular. P. Best has served as co-Chair of SCAI-WIN and Chair of the SCAI CME Oversight Committee, and is a member at Mission Lifeline. R. Mehran reports institutional research payments from Abbott, Abiomed, Alleviant Medical, AM-Pharma, Amgen, Applied Therapeutics, Arena, AstraZeneca, AtriCure, Bayer, Biosensors, Biotronik, Boston Scientific, Bristol-Myers Squibb, CardiaWave, CeloNova, Chiesi, Concept Medical, CSL Behring, Cytosorbents, Daiichi Sankyo, Element Science, Faraday, Humacyte, Idorsia, Janssen, Magenta, Medtronic, Novartis, OrbusNeich, PhaseBio, Philips, Pi-Cardia, RenalPro, RM Global, Shockwave, Vivasure, and Zoll; personal fees from Cine-Med Research Institute and WebMD; has equity <1% in Applied Therapeutics, Elixir Medical, Stel, and ControlRad (spouse); is on the Scientific Advisory Board of AMA; is on the Board of Trustees of the American College of Cardiology; is a Women in Innovations Committee Member for SCAI; is Associate Editor of JAMA; and is a member of the Cardiovascular Research Foundation faculty (no fee). L. Vitali-Serdoz has received lecture fees from Abbott Vascular and Medtronic. A. Sarma has received a grant from CRICO Patient Safety Award. J. Mauri is a stakeholder of CERC CRO. P. Szymański has received lecture fees from Novartis and Abbott Vascular. G. Stefanini has received institutional grant support from Boston Scientific paid to his institution and, has received lecture fees from Abbott Vascular, Boston Scientific, and Pfizer/BMS. A. Gimelli has served on the Pfizer Advisory Board for amyloidosis and the GE Healthcare Advisory Board for the safety of regadenoson in paediatric patients. P. Maurovich-Horvat is shareholder of Neumann Medical Ltd. L. Boersma has received consulting fees from Medtronic, Boston Scientific, Adagio, Philips, and Abbott paid to his institution; has served in the Committee of Science and Innovation for the Dutch Society of Cardiology, as Associate Editor of Europace (no fee) and in the EHRA Scientific Documents Committee (no fee). G.L. Buchanan has received support for attending meetings and/or travel from Menarini. G. Pontone has received grants from GE Healthcare, Bracco, Boehringer Ingleheim, and HeartFlow; has received consulting and lecture fees from GE Healthcare, Bracco, and Boehringer; and payment for expert testimony from GE Healthcare. L. Holmvang has received lecture fees from MicroPort and Bayer, and support for attending meetings from Abbott. N. Karam has received consulting fees from Abbott Vascular, Medtronic, and Edwards Lifesciences; has received lecture fees from Abbott Vascular and Edwards Lifesciences; has received support for attending meetings from Abbott Vascular; and has served on an advisory board for Medtronic. A. Neylon holds shares/stock options in CERC Europe. M-C. Morice is CEO and shareholder of CERC (not involved in this article) and is a minor shareholder of Electroducer. G. Tarantini has received consulting fees from Medtronic, GADA, Edwards Lifesciences, Boston Scientific, and Abbott Vascular; and has received lectures fees from Medtronic, GADA, Edwards Lifesciences, Boston Scientific, and Abbott Vascular. A. Chieffo has received consulting fees from Abiomed; and speaker fees from Abiomed, Abbott Vascular, and Biosensors; and has served on an advisory board for Shockwave Medical. The other authors have no conflicts of interest to declare

Figures

Central illustration
Central illustration. Managing the radiation safety of pregnant staff.
(adapted from Women as One https://rad.womenasone.org)
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Comment in

References

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