查看文章

Wide variations in patient dose for the same type of X-ray examination have been evident from various international dose surveys. Reference dose levels provide a framework to reduce this variability and aid in the optimization of radiation protection. The aim of this study was to establish, for the first time, a baseline for national reference dose levels in Ireland for four of the most common X-ray examinations: chest, abdomen, pelvis and lumbar spine. Measurements of entrance surface dose using thermoluminescent dosemeters (TLDs) for these four X-ray examinations were performed on 10 patients in each of 16 randomly selected hospitals. This represented 42% of Irish hospitals applicable to this study. Results have shown wide variation of mean hospital doses, from a factor of 3 for an anteroposterior lumbar spine to a factor of 23 for the chest X-ray. The difference between maximum and minimum individual patient …