Occupational radiation exposure from fluoroscopically guided percutaneous transhepatic biliary procedures

Area of Science:

• Medical Physics
• Radiology
• Occupational Health

Background:

• Fluoroscopically guided percutaneous transhepatic biliary (PTB) drainage and stent placement are common interventional radiology procedures.
• Accurate assessment of occupational radiation doses is crucial for protecting medical personnel.

Purpose of the Study:

• To determine occupational dose levels for projections used in PTB procedures.
• To provide data for estimating radiogenic risks and workloads for interventional radiologists.

Main Methods:

• Analysis of exposure data from 71 PTB examinations.
• Measurement of scattered air-kerma dose rates using an anthropomorphic phantom and dosimetry crystals.
• Conversion of dose rates to dose-area product (DAP)-normalized air-kerma values for standardization.

Main Results:

• Presentation of isodose maps for DAP-normalized air-kerma doses in the interventional laboratory.
• Provision of normalized dosimetric data for various PTB procedures, with and without shielding.
• Reporting of doses to the hands of interventional radiologists during PTB interventions.

Conclusions:

• Normalized air-kerma distributions aid in quantifying dose and radiogenic risks for medical staff.
• The presented normalized dose data can facilitate occupational exposure estimations across institutions.