Ultra-low-dose emergency chest computed tomography protocols in three vendors: A technical note

Area of Science:

• Radiology
• Medical Imaging
• Pulmonology

Background:

• Community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) diagnosis often relies on chest imaging.
• Chest CT scans offer superior detail over radiographs (CXR) but involve higher radiation doses.
• Ultra-low-dose CT (ULDCT) presents a promising alternative for reducing radiation exposure in CAP evaluation.

Purpose of the Study:

• To compare radiation dose and image quality between standard and ULDCT protocols.
• To evaluate ULDCT performance across three different CT scanner models (GE, Canon, Siemens) in a multicenter setting.

Main Methods:

• Patients with suspected CAP underwent both standard non-contrast CT (NCCT) and ULDCT.
• Effective radiation dose and Contrast-to-Noise Ratio (CNR) were calculated for each protocol and scanner.
• Data were collected from GE (n=10), Canon (n=9), and Siemens (n=10) scanners.

Main Results:

• ULDCT achieved significant dose reductions: 96% (GE), 68% (Canon), and 84% (Siemens).
• Mean effective doses for ULDCT were substantially lower across all scanners compared to NCCT.
• A moderate reduction in CNR (29-39%) was observed with ULDCT.

Conclusions:

• ULDCT protocols effectively minimize radiation doses for suspected CAP diagnosis.
• The evaluated ULDCT protocols demonstrate substantial radiation dose reduction across GE, Canon, and Siemens CT scanners.
• ULDCT is a viable and safer imaging option for evaluating suspected CAP.