A Career of Radiation Exposure and Risk?

A career in interventional medicine is one that comes with the risks inherent to radiation exposure. But should physicians simply accept that fate? Or is there an available solution to help minimize that risk?

The use of fluoroscopy has become an indispensable tool in interventional procedures as it provides real-time imaging using X-ray. With its increased use has come an increased risk of radiation exposure to the interventionalist and their staff in the form of scatter radiation. The National Cancer Institute defines scatter radiation as radiation that spreads out when the beam interacts with a substance, such as a patient. Scatter radiation is a major source of radiation exposure to medical staff.

In a study conducted by Maria Grazia Andreassi, Ph.D., and reported in Medical News Today, researchers found that, when compared to healthcare professionals who did not, healthcare professionals working in cath labs experienced:

• 7.1 times greater risk for orthopedic problems
• 6.3 times greater risk for cataracts
• 2.8 times greater risk for skin lesions
• The radiation exposure was highest for cardiologists and electrophysiologists (though the risk of radiation is high for anyone working in any interventional lab.)

But the real question arises... what is the solution?

In an article on our website, we mention that one of the many fundamentals of radiation safety is technology. Technology can dramatically reduce radiation exposure to not only the physician and staff but to the patient as well.

ROI (region of interest) technology has significantly reduced radiation exposure. Still, ROI technology has not yet been universally adopted by all manufacturers. Nor has AI image-guided technology that automatically collimates to the ROI – reducing radiation exposure by up to 84%.

The interventional X-ray systems designed and built by Omega provide an automatic, hands-free solution to radiation reduction – delivering the benefit of consistent and repeatable radiation reduction to staff and patients beyond anything else in use today.

AI image-guided ROI systems are proven to be safer than non-AI systems and are quickly becoming the new standard of care for interventional imaging. The publications and science on the advantages of AI are clear and proven in a study that compares an Omega AI image-guided ROI system to a competitor’s non-ROI systems.

If you'd like more data on AI imaging technology and how it is reducing radiation exposure, follow us on LinkedIn or visit our website at OmegaMedicalImaging.com.