Personnel dosimetry in fluoroscopy

Physicians who frequently perform fluoroscopic examinations are exposed to high intensity radiation fields and should use protective equipment such as lead aprons, thyroid shields and lead glasses. Standard individual dosimeters are worn under the lead apron in order to measure a dose that is representative of effective dose. However, large parts of the body are not protected by the apron (e.g. arms, head). Given a protection factor for the apron of about 100, an important irradiation of a body part not under the apron could go undetected. A study was conducted to analyse this situation by measuring dose using two dosimeters, one over-apron and one under-apron, for radiologists performing frequent fluoroscopic examinations. Measurements made over six-month period show that, indeed, the use of a single under-apron dosimeter is inadequate for personnel monitoring. Large doses to the head and arms are going undetected by this technique. A method for weighting the doses measured by under- and over-apron dosimeters to obtain a value better representative of the effective dose will be proposed. (authors)