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Radiation dose to premature new-borns in the Belgian neonatal intensive care units

Jérémie Dabin1, Lara Struelens, Filip Vanhavere

  • 1Department of Radiation protection, Dosimetry and Calibration, Belgian Nuclear Research Centre, 200 Boeretang, Mol 2400, Belgium.

Radiation Protection Dosimetry
|July 23, 2013
PubMed

Insights

Radiograph doses for premature infants in Belgian neonatal intensive care units (NICUs) varied significantly. Establishing diagnostic reference levels (DRLs) can help optimize radiation exposure and reduce cumulative doses for these vulnerable newborns.

Area of Science:

  • Medical Physics
  • Pediatric Radiology
  • Radiation Protection

Background:

  • Neonatal intensive care units (NICUs) expose premature newborns to radiation.
  • Premature infants are more radiosensitive and have longer life expectancies, necessitating dose optimization.
  • Evaluating radiation doses from common radiographic procedures is crucial for patient safety.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To assess radiation doses (Entrance Surface Kerma and Kerma Area Product) from common radiographs in Belgian NICUs.
  • To establish Diagnostic Reference Levels (DRLs) for chest and combined chest-abdomen radiographs in this population.
  • To identify variations in radiographic settings and explore potential for dose reduction.

Main Methods:

  • Collected Entrance Surface Kerma (ESK) and Kerma Area Product (KAP) data from 17 Belgian NICUs.
  • Analyzed data for chest and combined chest-abdomen radiographs.
  • Established DRLs based on collected dose data.

Main Results:

  • Median ESK varied from 13 to 172 µGy (chest) and 8 to 117 µGy (chest-abdomen).
  • Median KAP ranged from 1.4 to 14.2 mGy cm² (chest) and 3.8 to 28.1 mGy cm² (chest-abdomen).
  • Significant inter-centre variations in examination settings were observed, impacting dose levels.

Conclusions:

  • While individual radiograph doses were often low, cumulative doses per stay could be substantial.
  • Wide variations in doses highlight significant scope for radiation dose reduction in NICUs.
  • Implementing DRLs is expected to aid in achieving dose optimization for neonatal radiography.

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