Congress:
EuroSafe Imaging 2017
Keywords:
Radiation physics, Breast, Action 5 - Performance indicators for radiation protection management, Action 3 - Image quality assessment based on clinical indications, Action 2 - Clinical diagnostic reference levels (DRLs), Action 9 - Development of criteria for safe imaging procedures, Action 4 - Quality of radiological equipment, Action 3 - Optimisation, diagnostic reference levels, image quality, Mammography, Dosimetry, Quality assurance
Authors:
P. Butler, P. Platt, K. Lorig, E. Berns
DOI:
10.1594/esi2017/ESI-0027
Background/Introduction
The American College of Radiology’s (ACR) original ACR Committee on Mammography Quality Assurance,
chaired by Gerald Dodd,
MD,
first published its Mammography Quality Control (QC) Manual in 1990 to provide quality control procedures for screen-film mammography.
Three more versions were published,
the latest in 1999 under the chairmanship of R.
Edward Hendrick,
PhD [1].
In order to become accredited [2] and meet FDA mammography regulations facilities must perform FDA-required QC tests [3].
The ACR’s quality control manuals provide guidance to imaging professionals on how to conduct and evaluate those tests.
In 2000 the first full-field digital mammography unit was approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for clinical use.
Since then,
the FDA has required that facilities perform QC for approved digital mammography systems according to their respective manufacturer’s quality control manual [3].
As a result,
medical physicists and mammography technologists who perform QC on different manufacturers’ equipment must be familiar with the QC manuals for as many as 35 different manufacturers and models. These manuals all have different manufacturer and model-specific tests,
procedures,
frequencies and performance criteria.
Many of the tests, could be made more consistent across platforms.