Keywords:
Radioprotection / Radiation dose, Professional issues, CT, Radiation safety, Dosimetry, Safety
Authors:
R. P. P. Almeida, E. Santos, P. Sousa, S. Rodrigues, L. P. V. Ribeiro, K. B. Azevedo, N. F. Pinto, A. F. Abrantes; Faro/PT
DOI:
10.1594/ecr2016/B-1249
Conclusion
This study verified the reliability of bismuth protection using different configurations and by determining the percentage of dose reduction,
image quality and the influence of protection on the gantry in the normal functioning of CT scans.
In the configuration with protection but without sponge,
there was a dose reduction percentage of 22.6% but the image quality was adversely affected in respect to uniformity and the presence of streak artifact.
Although,
the configuration with protection with a sponge and two sponges were slightly better than the previous configuration in respect of image quality,
they become somewhat advantageous in respect of percent dose reduction.
The configuration with protection attached to the gantry was the most accepted in the study,
showing that the low-contrast resolution,
noise and spatial resolution were in line,
not adversely changing the image quality.
It was also found that streak artifacts were minimized when compared with the protection of the phantom.
Regarding the dose measurement,
we obtained satisfactory results in reducing the dose in phantom by approximately 28.2%.
We obtained acceptable results for both image quality and dose reduction in the phantom.
It´s appropriate to implement this protection configuration coupled to the gantry as a protective measure of patients in thorax CT scans.