[Diagnostic information value and radiation load on the patient of retrograde cholangiopancreatography and computed tomography of the pancreas].

The paper is devoted to a comparative analysis of the diagnostic value of retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP) and computed tomography (CT) in 50 patients with chronic pancreatitis and pancreatic tumors and comparison of radiation exposure of a patient during the use of these methods of x-ray examination. CT was shown to be a more informative method, particularly in the diagnosis of chronic pancreatitis. However, the results obtained with CT, were not specific enough to make convincing differential diagnosis between tumorous and inflammatory processes. In parallel with it radiation exposures the patients were subjected to, were assessed using an original method with thermoluminescent dosage meters. It was established that tissue doses, on the whole, were larger in ERCP than in CT, the difference being determined by the distinctive features of both methods and the duration of the endoscopic component in pancreatography.