Occupational doses during the injection of contrast media in paediatric CT procedures

The administration of intravenous contrast media by hand or power injection in paediatric computed tomography (CT) procedures is carried out at King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Centre for chest, abdomen and torso diagnostic examinations. Some procedures require the CT unit to commence pa...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inRadiation protection dosimetry Vol. 103; no. 2; p. 169
Main Authors Al-Haj, A N, Lobriguito, A M, Lagarde, C S
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published England 01.01.2003
Subjects
Adult
Child
Contrast Media - administration & dosage
Hand - radiation effects
Head - radiation effects
Humans
Injections, Intravenous
Nurses
Occupational Exposure
Phantoms, Imaging
Protective Clothing
Radiation Dosage
Radiation Protection
Saudi Arabia
Scattering, Radiation
Thermoluminescent Dosimetry
Time Factors
Tomography, X-Ray Computed - nursing
Saudi Arabia
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Summary:The administration of intravenous contrast media by hand or power injection in paediatric computed tomography (CT) procedures is carried out at King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Centre for chest, abdomen and torso diagnostic examinations. Some procedures require the CT unit to commence patient scanning during the injection of the last volume of the contrast medium. During the injection, even if the nurse is wearing a 0.5 mm lead equivalent protective apron, the head region and the hand are likely to receive high doses. This study was therefore made to assess the head and extremity doses to the nurses during CT procedures where typical exposure parameters of 200 to 220 mA s and 120 kVp were used. Thermoluminescence dosemeters were deployed for three consecutive months in two CT rooms. A total of 96 procedures were performed during this period and they were included in this study. Scattered radiation measurements were done at different locations where the nurse may be positioned. Results showed that the average dose to the head region and the hands per paediatric case were 50 microSv and 80 microSv respectively. This study investigated the factors that affect the dose and found them to be the length of stay inside the room, type of CT examination. exposure parameters and location of the nurse.
ISSN:0144-8420
DOI:10.1093/oxfordjournals.rpd.a006129