Abstract

The diagnostic reference levels (DRLs) are important operational agents for improvement of patient protection from radiation doses in radiological imaging. It advised by the International Commission on Radiological Protection (ICRP) as an advisory measure to optimization of patient protection by determining high patient dose levels which might not be necessary on the basis of image quality needs, so one of the main goals of this study was protection of patients from radiation doses during CT examination, evaluate radiation doses received by patients from CT examination that conducting in three medical imaging centres, Department of radiology in PAR Hospital, Hawler Hospital, and Cardiac Centre, in Erbil.

Compare the results with National Reference levels. The patients with total sample of 335 patients that undergoing various CT examinations including head, chest, and abdomen were collected. The data collected included age, gender, region examined, length, weight. Simulation software, CT Expo (Ver.2. 3. 1 Germany) were used for each examinations, radiation doses from CT that received by patients, and presented in terms of weighted Computed Tomography dose index (CTDI), dose length product (DLP). The results show that the mean values of CTDIw, DLP ranged from 6.7 ± 5.8 to 60 ± 1.7 mGy, 156 ± 88.5 to 884 ± 182.2, respectively. It is important to aware and optimizes the high radiation dose of CT equipment.

Keywords: CT-scan; Radiation dose; Weighted CT dose index; Dose length product; National Reference levels; Volume CT dose index; Body mass index