Radiation exposure to cardiologists performing interventional cardiology procedures

Area of Science:

• Medical Physics
• Interventional Cardiology
• Radiation Protection

Background:

• Medical doctors in interventional cardiology face significant radiation exposure.
• Monitoring and quantifying this exposure is crucial for occupational health and safety.

Purpose of the Study:

• To measure the radiation dose received by interventional cardiologists.
• To calculate effective doses and establish an effective dose to dose area product (E/DAP) index.
• To estimate annual radiation doses based on laboratory workload.

Main Methods:

• Radiation doses were measured in 9 cardiologists across 144 procedures (coronary angiographies and percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasties) using thermoluminescent dosimeters (TLDs).
• Effective dose was calculated using the Niklason method, with dose area product (DAP) registered for normalization.
• The E/DAP index was computed to standardize dose measurements.

Main Results:

• Mean effective doses ranged from 1.2-2.7 microSv.
• Mean E/DAP values were between 0.010-0.035 microSv/Gycm2.
• Estimated maximum annual doses were 1.9 mSv and 2.8 mSv in the two participating hospitals.

Conclusions:

• Radiation doses for interventional cardiologists in this study were within acceptable limits.
• The findings provide valuable data for radiation protection strategies in interventional cardiology.
• Annual effective doses are estimated to be well below occupational exposure limits.