Beyond dose: an occupational health perspective on architecture as an overlooked component of dental radiology exposure in industrial settings

Dental X-ray imaging is widely used in daily dental practice and is usually considered safe because radiation doses are low. This belief mainly comes from studies carried out in hospitals and standard dental clinics, where walls and rooms are built with proper radiation shielding. However, dental radiology is not always performed in such environments. In many industrial and corporate workplaces, dental clinics are located inside office buildings that use thin, lightweight, or prefabricated walls. In these settings, wall shielding might be overlooked, absent or not regularly checked. During dental imaging, especially when cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT) is used, scattered radiation may pass outside the dental room, reaching nearby offices or to surrounding working areas. Not only are dental staff exposed, but also other workers who are not considered radiation workers and are not routinely monitored. From this point of view, it is an occupational health perspective based on professional past experiences and published literature. It discusses how building design, wall materials, indoor scatter radiation, and environmental conditions may be overlooked factors in occupational exposure from dental radiology in industrial settings. Special attention is given to the thyroid gland because of its known sensitivity to radiation. No exposure measurements or case investigations are presented, and no causal conclusions are made. The aim of this perspective is to raise awareness and encourage further workplace audits and research on architectural shielding and radiation protection in non-hospital dental clinics.