Radiation exposure during anaesthetic practice

With anaesthesia being administered more often outside of theatre in areas such as radiology suites, the occupational risk to anaesthetists from ionizing radiation may have increased. To determine radiation exposure from X-ray sources during normal anaesthetic practice, passive personal radiation monitoring devices were used to record the occupational exposure to radiation of 29 anaesthetists over a one calendar month period. Occupational whole body effective dose was calculated and extrapolated to give an estimated annual radiation exposure. Seven of the 29 anaesthetists recorded a dose that was higher than the minimum detectable limit. Extrapolating to estimate yearly doses, no anaesthetist would have approached the annual occupational dose limits for ionizing radiation. The maximum extrapolated annual whole body effective dose was 2.14 mSv, the Australian Recommendation and National Standard for occupational exposure being less than 20 mSv per year. The anaesthetist with the highest exposure would have exceeded the yearly recommended exposure limit for pregnant women (1 mSv). Even if they had worked all sessions in a radiation exposed environment, this person would not have exceeded the yearly annual occupational dose limits for ionizing radiation for non-pregnant staff provided they had worn a standard protective lead gown. The collar dose for this person was 7.08 mSv which may represent a significant risk to the thyroid if a protective lead collar was not worn. Although anaesthetists' radiation exposure is within acceptable limits, caution should be taken in rostering pregnant staff to anaesthetize where radiation exposure occurs, and all anaesthetists should routinely wear thyroid collars in such areas.