Comparison of the local dose of scattered radiation of a special dental - phantom and a real human head by using a Digital Volume Tomography (DVT)

Dental Radiography Digital Volume Tomography (DVT) gains more and more importance due to its possibility of three-dimensional imaging of teeth, jaw and visercoranium and the reduced radiation dose in comparison to conventional Computer Tomography (CT). Contrary to other, well documented radiographic procedures like dental panorama X-ray imaging there are no national or international guidelines or recommendations relating to DVT which regulate the designation of areas and standardize risk assessment. This study aims to assess the parameters necessary for local radiation protection in dental practices. Measurements were carried out in dental practices in order to evaluate the local dose resulting from different DVT devices. A special dental-phantom and a real human head were used in the irradiations in order to define the local dose of scattered radiation by nominal voltage. The dental-phantom was created for conventional dental panorama X-ray devices which make use of lower nominal voltages. This poses the question if the scatter performance of the special dental-phantom is comparable to a real human head and therefore applicable to the estimation of the radiation quality of a DVT when using 120 kV. The existing guidelines for dental panorama xray are analyzed and suggestions for future recommendations concerning the designation of areas and risk assessment for DVT are then deducted by comparing both sets of measurements. The results show that the special dental-phantom is absolutely suitable for the definition of the local dose resulting from the scattered radiation of a DVT. (author)