Grigsby P, Perez C
Mallinckrodt Institute of Radiology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO.
Adm Radiol. 1990 Dec;9(12):61, 63-4, 66-9.
A relatively recent development in the United States in brachytherapy technology is the use of equipment to remotely afterload radioactive sources into the patient applicators. This technique competes with past practices where the source was placed by hand. With remote afterloading, the sources are automatically removed from the patient and placed into a lead safe whenever healthcare personnel enter the patient's room. The primary benefit of remote afterloading brachytherapy is to reduce the radiation exposure to the patient's visitors and healthcare providers. By comparing the operating and maintenance costs for remote afterloading brachytherapy (RAL) and manual afterloading (MAL) for patients receiving conventional low dose rate brachytherapy from interstitial and intracavitary implants, estimates of the prospective cost of this increased safety can be offered.
美国近距离放射治疗技术中一项相对较新的进展是使用设备将放射源远程后装到患者施源器中。这项技术与过去手动放置放射源的做法形成竞争。采用远程后装技术时，只要医护人员进入患者房间，放射源就会自动从患者体内取出并放入铅制保险箱。远程后装近距离放射治疗的主要益处是减少对患者访客和医护人员的辐射暴露。通过比较接收间质和腔内植入传统低剂量率近距离放射治疗的患者采用远程后装近距离放射治疗（RAL）和手动后装（MAL）的操作和维护成本，可以估算出这种安全性提高所带来的预期成本。
