[en] Objective: The objective of this work has been to make the medical and technical staff aware of the extra dose received by a pediatric patient when an adult chest protocol is applied. In addition, we have sought to optimize the standard protocols for each medical center, in order to reduce the dose that this type of patient receives, without neglecting image quality. Materials and methods: Two 64- and 16-channel tomographs respectively belonging to two medical centers were used to measure dose indices and subsequent optimization of protocols, using a pediatric polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA) phantom developed for a two-year-old patient. Results The use of the adult protocols of each center in the child manikin has generated a value in the weighted kerma index 89.47% higher than that received using the adult manikin for the first center (64-channel tomograph) and for the second (16-channel tomograph) 49.12%. The optimized protocols managed to reduce the dose by 62.19% for the first case and 63.70% for the second, keeping the percentage of noise in the image below 1%. Conclusions: The research presented shows the need to use exclusive protocols for pediatric patients. If not, pediatric patients receive unnecessarily high doses. The optimized protocols show that it is possible to reduce the doses, varying the parameters of the x-ray tube, maintaining the quality of the image.
Source
Sección de Protección Radiológica de la Sociedad Cubana de Física, La Habana (Cuba); Sociedad Cubana de Física (SCF), La Habana (Cuba); Centro de Protección e Higiene de las Radiaciones (CPHR), La Habana (Cuba); Centro Nacional de Seguridad Nuclear (CNSN), La Habana (Cuba); Dirección Nacional de Salud Ambiental (DNSA), La Habana (Cuba); Agencia de Energía Nuclear y Tecnologías de Avanzada (AENTA), La Habana (Cuba); Oficina de Regulación Ambiental y Seguridad Nuclear (ORASEN), La Habana (Cuba); Asociación Internacional de Protección Radiológica (IRPA), La Habana (Cuba); Federación de Radioprotección de América Latina y el Caribe (FRALC), La Habana (Cuba); International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Vienna (Austria); Organización Panamericana de la Salud (OPS), La Habana (Cuba); Organización Mundial de la Salud (OMS), La Habana (Cuba); Foro Iberoamericano de Organismos Reguladores Radiológicos y Nucleares (FORO), La Habana (Cuba); 1 CD-ROM; ISBN 9 789597 231066; 
; 20 Apr 2018; p. 124; 11. Regional Congress on Radiation and Nuclear Safety, Regional Congress of the International Radiation Protection Association (IRPA)); La Habana (Cuba); 16-20 Apr 2018
; 20 Apr 2018; p. 124; 11. Regional Congress on Radiation and Nuclear Safety, Regional Congress of the International Radiation Protection Association (IRPA)); La Habana (Cuba); 16-20 Apr 2018