Dose optimization in CT, in Nuclear Medicine and in PET-CT procedures

The fast development during the last few decades of medical imaging technologies led to the exposure of patients, workers and members of the public to increasingly higher ionizing radiation doses. The assessment of the (radiological) risk versus benefit, arising from the utilization of ionizing radiations for medical imaging purposes, must be performed in light of the three fundamental principles of the international system of Radiation Protection, namely justification, optimization and dose limitation. In this context, the consequences and operational aspects of the implementation of the optimization principle in clinical environments involve complex tasks. For the purposes of the present work, nine Radiology and Nuclear Medicine medical institutions were visited in order to assess the exposure of patients, workers and members of the public to radiation doses in Computed Tomography, conventional Nuclear Medicine and PET/CT examinations.