Congress:
EuroSafe Imaging 2019
Keywords:
Quality assurance, Education and training, Dosimetric comparison, Radiation safety, CT, Conventional radiography, Radioprotection / Radiation dose, Action 5 - Performance indicators for radiation protection management, Action 2 - Clinical diagnostic reference levels (DRLs)
Authors:
J.-F. Chateil, H. Ducou le Pointe, E. Museux, P. Roch, D. Celier, J.-F. Meder, C. Etard
DOI:
10.26044/esi2019/ESI-0045
Description of activity and work performed
In France,
any institution with a medical imaging facility must annually evaluate the doses delivered for two types of examination and for 30 patients per examination. These data have to be compared to the applicable DRLs and to be transmitted to IRSN using a dedicated web site. This requirement allows professionals to implement a dose optimization approach and the public authorities to update the DRL values.
The analysis of the 2013-2015 data shows a decrease by 10% on average in conventional radiology and by 15% in CT,
compared with the previous collection period (2011-2012).
Furthermore,
2015 data were in average 40% below the previous DRLs based on 2009-2010 data.
These results confirmed the need for updated DRLs.
For adults,
the data recorded by the IRSN were sufficient to propose this update.
For children,
data were too scarce to establish new DRLs.
It was decided to develop specific actions to collect data in paediatric imaging to compensate for the lack of evaluation of practices and to provide valuable DRLs to radiologists.
A practice survey was therefore conducted in 19 hospitals with significant activity in this area.
The methodology suggested by the European Commission has been followed to establish new DRL tables,
including CT for different age categories.
The coming regulations will also integrate interventional radiology in adults into the DRL process,
in addition to conventional radiology,
computed tomography and nuclear medicine.
This proposal is consistent with recent European requirements.
The establishment of these DRLs in interventional radiology was conducted in cooperation with medical physicists (data presented in another scientific work).