Biophysics Department, Faculty of Science, Cairo University, Giza, Egypt.
Radiology Department, ALNas Hospital, Cairo, Egypt.
Radiat Environ Biophys. 2023 Aug;62(3):331-338. doi: 10.1007/s00411-023-01031-6. Epub 2023 Jun 22.
Recently, paediatric cardiac computed tomography (CCT) has caused concerns that diagnostic image quality and dose reduction may require further improvement. Consequently, this study aimed to establish institutional (local) diagnostic reference levels (LDRLs) for CCT for paediatric patients, and assess the impact of tube voltage on proposed DRLs in terms of the volume computed tomography index (CTDIvol) and dose length product (DLP). In addition, effective doses (EDs) of exposure were estimated. A population of 453 infants, whose mass and age were less than 12 kg and 2 years, respectively, were considered from January 2018 to August 2021. Based on previous studies, this number of patients was considered to be sufficient for establishing LDRLs. A group of 245 patients underwent CCT examinations at 70 kVp tube voltage with an average scan range of 23.4 cm. Another set of 208 patients underwent CCT examinations at 100 kVp tube voltage with an average scan range of 15.8 cm. The observed CTDI and DLP values were 2.8 mGy and 54.8 mGy.cm, respectively. The mean effective dose (ED) was 1.2 mSv. It is concluded that provisional establishment and use of DRLs for cardiac computed tomography in children are crucial, and further research is needed to develop regional and international DRLs.
最近，儿科心脏计算机断层扫描（CCT）引起了人们的关注，即诊断图像质量和剂量减少可能需要进一步改进。因此，本研究旨在为儿科患者的 CCT 建立机构（本地）诊断参考水平（LDRL），并评估管电压对提出的 DRL 以体层 CT 指数（CTDIvol）和剂量长度乘积（DLP）的影响。此外，还估计了曝光的有效剂量（ED）。从 2018 年 1 月至 2021 年 8 月，考虑了体重和年龄分别小于 12kg 和 2 岁的 453 名婴儿的人群。基于以前的研究，认为这个患者数量足以建立 LDRL。一组 245 名患者以 70 kVp 管电压进行 CCT 检查，平均扫描范围为 23.4cm。另一组 208 名患者以 100 kVp 管电压进行 CCT 检查，平均扫描范围为 15.8cm。观察到的 CTDI 和 DLP 值分别为 2.8mGy 和 54.8mGy.cm，平均有效剂量（ED）为 1.2mSv。总之，为儿童心脏计算机断层扫描临时建立和使用 DRL 是至关重要的，需要进一步研究以制定区域和国际 DRL。
