ON THE PLACEMENT OF APRON DOSEMETERS AND DOSE ASSESSMENT IN INTERVENTIONAL CARDIOLOGY PROCEDURES: PRELIMINARY RESULTS

Area of Science:

• Medical Physics
• Radiation Protection
• Occupational Health

Background:

• Interventional practices lead to higher radiation exposure for medical personnel compared to other roles.
• Effective personnel monitoring and radiation protection are essential to maintain occupational doses within regulatory limits.
• Previous research by EURADOS Working Group 12 highlighted the impact of scattered radiation fields on operator doses.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the influence of scattered radiation fields on registered doses.
• To assess the effect of dosemeter placement on the apron on dose measurements.
• To quantify the variability in dosemeter response due to these factors.

Main Methods:

• Utilized Monte Carlo simulations to model radiation interactions and dose distribution.
• Validated simulation results through experimental measurements.
• Analyzed the impact of dosemeter positioning on dose readings.

Main Results:

• The scattered radiation field significantly affects the doses registered by personnel dosemeters.
• The specific position of a dosemeter on an apron introduces considerable variability in dose measurements.
• A dose variability of approximately +/- 30% to 40% was observed, depending on dosemeter placement.

Conclusions:

• Accurate assessment of occupational radiation exposure requires consideration of dosemeter placement and scattered radiation.
• The variability in dosemeter response necessitates careful interpretation of measured doses.
• This study emphasizes the importance of understanding dosemeter response variability for effective radiation protection in interventional procedures.