Evaluation of Patients Dose during Conventional Lumbosacral Radiography

Abstract

The radiation dose to the patient associated with a routine lumbar spine X-ray examination is relatively high compared with other plain film X-ray examinations. X-ray imaging of the lumbar spine is estimated to be 6% of all radiographic procedures. During the procedure, the genital organs are exposed to a significant radiation dose. Therefore the estimation of radiation risk is essential. The main objective of this study to quantify the patient dose during lumbo-sacral spine and to estimate organ doses and its related risks. The data used in this Study was collected from Al-Ingaz Diagnostic Center, Khartoum North. A total of 49 patients were examined from July 2011 to January 2012. radiation dose was measured using Dose Cal software and exposure factors. The mean patient BMI in this study was 33.40±22 kg/m2 for the males while for the females was 34.21 kg/m2. The mean and standard deviation for patients’ ages was 52.74±13 years for the males while the females were 45.67±11 years. The mean tube voltage was 81.37 kVp for AP and 86.16 kVp for the lateral view. The mean patient doses were 1.32±0.25 mGy, 1.24±0.21 mGy for female and males, respectively. The mean effective dose was 0.75 mSv per procedure. The mean patient doses were comparable for males and females. The organ doses were within acceptable limits. The radiation doses were comparable and lower compared with previous studies. Efforts to reduce the frequency and the radiation dose of this procedure must be kept up, technically by optimizing the equipment and radioprotection measures.