[Quality assurance in radiology: quality control of radiographic cassettes]

A "quality team" in radiology, whose members are the authors of this paper, has implemented a quality control program to test the cassettes with intensifying screen systems used in radiology departments. 149 systems-124 of them for general purpose radiology and 25 for mammography-were submitted to the following tests: visual inspection of radiographic cassettes and intensifying screens, screen-film contact, intensifying screen cleanliness and relative sensitivity of the intensifying screens. The results of each type of test are reported in detail in the paper, on a 3-point scale: good, sufficient and poor. The overall results of the quality control tests show 78% of general purpose radiology cassettes to qualify as good (69%) or sufficient (9%), while 22% were of poor quality. 88% of the mammographic cassettes qualified as good (76%) or sufficient (12%), while 12% were of poor quality. All tests were easy to perform and required limited resources. The necessary procedures to keep quality high over time are also reported. To conclude, the results obtained with our quality control program could be used as an effective tool to address and plan the turnover of the cassettes with intensifying screens which are usually used in diagnostic radiology practice.