3D printing of realistic body phantoms: Comparison of measured and simulated organ doses on the example of a CT scan on a pregnant woman.

Background: Medical examinations or treatment of pregnant women using ionizing radiation are sometimes unavoidable. In such cases, the risk of harm to the embryo and fetus after exposure to ionizing radiation must be carefully estimated. However, no commercially available anthropomorphic body phantoms of pregnant women are available for dose measurements.

Reproduction of a conventional anthropomorphic female chest phantom by 3D-printing: Comparison of image contrasts and absorbed doses in CT.

Background: The production of individualized anthropomorphic phantoms via three-dimensional (3D) printing methods offers promising possibilities to assess and optimize radiation exposures for specifically relevant patient groups (i.e., overweighed or pregnant persons) that are not adequately represented by standardized anthropomorphic phantoms.

Dose Variations Using an X-Ray Cabinet to Establish Dose-Response Curves for Biological Dosimetry Assays.

In biological dosimetry, dose-response curves are essential for reliable retrospective dose estimation of individual exposure in case of a radiation accident. Therefore, blood samples are irradiated and evaluated based on the applied assay. Accurate physical dosimetry of the irradiation performance is a critical part of the experimental procedure and is influenced by the experimental setup, especially when X-ray cabinets are used.

Use of effective dose to assess x-ray protective clothing.

This review article provides an overview on the results of studies conducted by the authors to improve the current personal protection concept in the clinical application of x-rays. With the aid of personal dose equivalent measurements during radiologically guided clinical interventions, laboratory tests using the Alderson-Rando phantom as well as Monte Carlo simulations various x-ray application scenarios were investigated. The organ doses and the effective doses of staff persons standing near the patient were determined.

Shielding effectiveness of X-ray protective garment.

Purpose: Certification of the X-ray shielding garment is based on attenuation testing on flat material samples. We investigated the difference of shielding effectiveness compared to realistic use when the garment is worn on the body of a staff person.

Methods: Attenuation factors of X-ray protective aprons have been evaluated for several clinical scenarios with Monte Carlo (MC) calculations based on the ICRP female reference model and an experimental setup.