Abstract
Occupational radiation doses from interventional procedures have the potential to be relatively high. The requirement to optimise these doses encourages the use of electronic or active personal dosimeters (APDs) which are now increasingly used in hospitals. They are typically used in tandem with a routine passive dosimetry monitoring programme, with APDs used for real-time readings, for training purposes and when new imaging technology is introduced. However, there are limitations when using APDs. A survey in hospitals to identify issues related to the use of APDs was recently completed, along with an extensive series of APD tests by the EURADOS Working Group 12 on Dosimetry for Medical Imaging. The aim of this review paper is to summarise the state of the art regarding the use of APDs. We also used the results of our survey and our tests to develop a set of recommendations for the use of APDs in the clinical interventional radiology/cardiology settings, and draw attention to some of the current challenges.
Highlights
The European Radiation Dosimetry (EURADOS) group is a non-profit association for promoting research and development and European cooperation in the field of the dosimetry of ionizing radiation
The aim of this paper is to summarise the significant body of research done on this topic, starting with the relevant standards and literature and concluding with recommendations for the use of active personal dosemeters (APDs), with particular focus on their use during interventional procedures
These actions included an extensive survey in hospitals to identify issues related to APDs in medical appli cations [16], an assessment of the influence of lead aprons on the cali bration and use of APDs and passive dosemeters [17] and tests on APDs in standard continuous and pulsed fields according to the new ISO technical specification [18]
Summary
The European Radiation Dosimetry (EURADOS) group is a non-profit association for promoting research and development and European cooperation in the field of the dosimetry of ionizing radiation. Standards and guidance on occupational monitoring, including APDs. The IAEA Basic Safety Standards state that assessment of the occu pational exposure of workers on the basis of individual monitoring shall be made with authorized or approved dosimetry service providers that operate under a quality management system [1]. An active dosemeter might serve the purpose of main taining alertness to possible accidental exposures It can be used for dose control in situations where the radiation field experienced by a worker could increase unexpectedly and significantly (say, by a factor of ten), or for operations of short duration in high radiation fields. In the same Safety Guide it is stated that while an APD is usually used only for purposes of dose control, it can be used with prior approval from the regulatory body, as a replacement for the dosemeter of record. Some models of APDs can provide information on the time of each exposure, which facilitates correlation of occupational and patient exposures, and auditing of the wearing of the APD during interventions
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