Analysis of radiation dose for PET/CT nurse at a hospital

Objective: In this study, significant data on radiation protection obtained by recording the whole-body and the finger radiation dose of nurses engaged in injection in the PET/CT room, to implement some techniques for the radiation protection of the nurses. Methods: The thermoluminescence dosimeter (Td) worn on the left and right fingers of two nurses, placed on the outside and inside of the lead-based shielding vestments of the left chest to measure the radiation dose. The average exposure dose of one injection and the protective effect of lead-based shielding vestment can be calculated by the numbers of injects and the dose of the nurses during the monitoring period. Results: The exposed dose of the left fingers of the two nurses was larger than that of the right finger, and the average dose of one injection was 5.8 ∼ 13.0 μSv, the difference was 0.4 to 0.8 times; The dose value of the inside of the vestment was less than that the outside, and the radiation attenuation rate of the vestment was between 2.8% and 6.6%. Conclusion: For nurses engaged in 18F injection in the PET/CT room, the finger dose mainly depends on the number of injections, the dose of injection drugs and the proficiency in the injection. The protective effect of lead-based shielding vestment is very limited. The nurses can be effectively protected only by improving proficiency in injection operation and shortening the exposure time of ¹⁸F radiation. (authors)