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Age-specific effective doses for pediatric MSCT examinations at a large children's hospital using DLP conversion coefficients: a simple estimation method.

Thomas KE, Wang B

Department of Diagnostic Imaging, The Hospital for Sick Children, 555 University Ave., Toronto, M5G 1X8, Canada, karen.thomas@sickkids.ca.

BACKGROUND: There is a need for an easily accessible method for effective dose estimation in pediatric CT. OBJECTIVE: To estimate effective doses for a variety of pediatric neurological and body CT examinations in five age groups using recently published age- and region-specific dose length product (DLP) to effective dose conversion coefficients. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A retrospective review was performed of 1,431 consecutive CT scans over a 12-week period using age- and weight-adjusted CT protocols. Age- and region-specific DLP to effective dose conversion coefficients were applied to console-displayed DLP data. RESULTS: Effective dose estimates for single-phase head CT scans in neonatal, and 1-, 5-, 10- and 15-year-old age groups were 4.2, 3.6, 2.4, 2.0 and 1.4 mSv, respectively. For abdomen/pelvis CT scans the corresponding effective doses were 13.1, 11.1, 8.4, 8.9 and 5.9 mSv. The range of pediatric CT effective doses is wide, from ultralow dose protocols (<1 mSv) to extended-coverage body examinations (10-15 mSv). CONCLUSION: Age- and region-specific pediatric DLP to effective dose conversion coefficients provide an accessible and user-friendly method for estimating pediatric CT effective doses that is available to radiologists working without medical physics support.

Published 6 May 2008 in Pediatr Radiol, 38(6): 645-56.
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