The dosimetry of eye shields for kilovoltage X-ray beams

The objective of this work was to evaluate the dosimetry of tungsten eye shields for use with kilovoltage X-ray beam treatments. The eye shields, originally designed for megavoltage electron beams, were made of 2 mm tungsten thickness and inside diameters of 11.6 and 15.0 mm with optional aluminium caps of 0.5 and 1 mm thickness. The relative dosimetry of the eye shields were examined by measurement of transmission doses with full scatter conditions, central axis depth doses and beam profiles underneath the eye shield. The X-ray beams used in this study ranged in energy from 50 to 280 kVp. Transmission measurements were performed using an Advanced Markus ionisation chamber located at the surface of an RMI457 Solid Water phantom with a 3 cm diameter applicator flush against the phantom surface. Depth doses and profiles measurements were performed in a PTW MP3 scanning water tank with a PTW diamond detector. Results for transmission doses for the medium size eye shield increased from 1 to 22 % for 50-280 kVp while for the smaller eye shield the percentage dose increased from 3.5 to 30 % for the same energy range. There were minimal differences between using the 0.5 and 1 mm aluminium caps. Central axis depth doses measured with and without the eye shields demonstrated the 125 and 180 kVp beams had higher peak doses behind the eye shields. These results show that these tungsten eye shields are suitable for use with kilovoltage X-ray beams. However, the clinical impact needs to be considered for the higher X-ray beam energies.