Paediatric radiation dose measurements undergoing X-ray examination in Tasmania

A pilot study was carried out involving six radiology centres across the state of Tasmania, Australia, with two main goals. First, to compare the choice of exposure factors used by each centre for four common paediatric projections of a 'standard' infant, 5-, 10- and 15-year-old patients. Second, to measure dose area product (DAP) at each radiology centre using the factors obtained and compare it against published diagnostic reference levels (DRLs). Significant variation was observed between the six radiology centres studied which has been attributed to the variability in exposure factors provided by the centres. Notably, the measured DAP values in the case of infant and 5-year-old patients were observed to be significantly lower than the published reference DAP DRLs. While significantly higher exposure factors have been observed for 15-year-old patients as illustrated in measured DAP values.