[X-Ray, false friend of the interventional cardiologist - Risks, evaluation, quality improvement - Status report from...

Although indispensable, radiation exposure during cardiac catheterization procedures can cause specific radiation-induced diseases. These affect the patient but also the interventional cardiologist. Exposure to high or repeated radiation doses causes deterministic effects. Moreover, even low-dose exposure, especially when repeated, produces a risk of stochastic effets. In that respect, it is crucial to improve the radiation safety of cardiac angiography and interventions, to promote radiation protection and to maintain this exposure « As Low As Reasonably Achievable ». Thus, there is a necessity to spread knowledge about safety standards and recommandations to reduces the dose among interventionalists. Data collection and comparaison of practices are precious to this quality improvement process. For the year 2020, France-PCI registry had collected dosimetric datas related to 55 783 coronary angiographic and interventional procedures from 30 centers in France. Mean fluoroscopy time was 4,4 minutes for diagnostic procedures. Mean PDS was 1 767cGy.Cm2 and mean Air Kerma de 257Gy. Coronary percutaneous angioplasty procedures were related to approximately two to three times higher mean exposures. Mean exposure related to chronic coronary total occlusion treatment procedures was also two times higher than exposure related to non-CTO interventions. These data also highlighted wide disparities between centers.