Quality assurance: using the exposure index and the deviation index to monitor radiation exposure for portable chest radiographs in neonates
- نوع فایل : کتاب
- زبان : انگلیسی
- مؤلف : Mervyn D. Cohen & Matt L. Cooper & Kelly Piersall & Bruce K. Apgar
- چاپ و سال / کشور: 2010
Description
Background Many methods are used to track patient exposure during acquisition of plain film radiographs. A uniform international standard would aid this process. Objective To evaluate and describe a new, simple qualityassurance method for monitoring patient exposure. This method uses the “exposure index” and the “deviation index,” recently developed by the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) and American Association of Physicists in Medicine (AAPM). The deviation index measures variation from an ideal target exposure index value. Our objective was to determine whether the exposure index and the deviation index can be used to monitor and control exposure drift over time. Materials and methods Our Agfa workstation automatically keeps a record of the exposure index for every patient. The exposure index and deviation index were calculated on 1,884 consecutive neonatal chest images. Exposure of a neonatal chest phantom was performed as a control. Results Acquisition of the exposure index and calculation of the deviation index was easily achieved. The weekly mean exposure index of the phantom and the patients was stable and showed <10% change during the study, indicating no exposure drift during the study period. Conclusion The exposure index is an excellent tool to monitor the consistency of patient exposures. It does not indicate the exposure value used, but is an index to track compliance with a pre-determined target exposure.
Pediatr Radiol (2011) 41:592–601 DOI 10.1007/s00247-010-1951-9 Received: 4 June 2010 / Revised: 19 November 2010 / Accepted: 27 November 2010 / Published online: 30 December 2010
