Analysis of a radiation incident with intraoral dental radiological equipment

A case is described involving a serious incident with dental radiological equipment, containing many lessons that may be applied to the preparation of other cases. The description includes an account of the incident, the circumstances surrounding it, the dosimetry, risk estimates and the medical consequences of the incident. In addition, some aspects of the associated legal proceedings are reviewed and assessed. As a result of the incident described, a number of conclusions are drawn with respect to important practices in ensuring the safety of installations and the value of evidence brought forward by expert witnesses. (author)