Examination technique, image quality, and patient dose in paediatric radiology. A survey including 19 Swedish hospitals.

PURPOSE

Investigation of examination technique, image quality, and absorbed dose to the patients in paediatric radiology.

MATERIAL AND METHODS

In total, 19 Swedish hospitals participated in the study. Using a questionnaire, the hospitals described their examination technique for the pelvis, urinary tract, colon, scoliosis, and lung. The image quality and patient dose were experimentally studied for the simulated pelvis examination of a 1-year-old child. This examination was carried out with a test object containing a contrast-detail phantom. TL dosimeters were used to determine the absorbed dose on the surface of the phantom, approximately corresponding to the absorbed dose on the surface of the patient.

RESULTS

Examination techniques varied considerably among the hospitals, the most striking difference concerning the film-screen sensitivity. Consequently, there was a variation in the absorbed dose on the surface of the phantom, from 0.09 mGy to 1.7 mGy (mean 0.65 mGy). For a large range of doses, 0.4-1.7 mGy, the image quality was not significantly different.

CONCLUSION

The unharmonized, and in many places unoptimized, examination techniques led to a great variation in the absorbed dose to the children examined.