Evaluation of image quality, organ doses, effective dose, and cancer risk from pediatric brain CT scans

The present study was conducted to assess organ doses, effective dose, and image quality, and to estimate the risk of exposure-induced cancer death (REID) in pediatric brain computed tomography examinations.

This investigation was performed on 179 pediatric patients (99 men and 80 women) under 12 years old who underwent non-contrast brain CT scans. Patients were classified into four age groups of ≤ 1, 2-5, 6-9, and 10-12 years old. Organ doses and effective doses were calculated using the ImpactDose program. Cancer risk models presented in the BEIR VII report were used to estimate REID values. Image quality assessment in this study was performed by measuring image quality parameters such as noise, signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), and contrast-to-noise ratio (CNR).

The highest organ dose in all age groups belonged to the brain. The mean REID values were 12.34 per 100,000 males and 16.77 per 100,000 females. REID values decreased with the increasing age of patients in both genders and were higher for female children than male children. The mean SNR of gray matter, SNR of white matter, and CNR were 11.04, 10.5, and 2.31, respectively.

According to the results of this study, brain CT scans in children are associated with an increased potential risk of cancer. Therefore, minimizing unnecessary radiation exposure in pediatric patients and using alternative imaging modalities are of particular importance. Moreover, optimizing the radiation parameters while maintaining the diagnostic image quality in children should be considered.