Optimizing Parameters Of Children In Chest Digital Radiography

Objective: To compare children chest image quality and radiation dose of four groupsperformed with digital radiography(DR) and to explore the feasibility of tube voltage setby depending on child’s age. Methods: This prospective study was approved by localinstitutional review boards, and patients or guardians provided written informed consent.Four thousand five hundred children aged0to14children were randomly divided intoprotocols A, B, C and control subject performed with digital radiography, lower KvPgroup (A), intermediate Kvp group (B), and higher Kvp group (C) and fixed high Kvpgroup(control). Protocols A, B and C stands were different range of tube voltage settingsfor age-dependent five groups(0~,1~,3~,7~and11~14years old). There included4433patients of children anteroposterior or posteroanterior chest image in the study, andexcluded67patients. Dose area product(DAP) and visual grading analysis score(VGAS)were determined and compared. Mean DAP and VGAS using one-way ANOVA forstatistical analysis.Results: Mean DAP of protocol C was significantly lower as comparedto protocols A, B and control subjet(P＜0.05). Mean DAP of protocol C was18.75%lower than that of control subject. There was no statistically significant difference betweenmean DAP of protocol B and control subjet(P=0.976). Mean DAP was higher in protocolA than in control subjet(P=0.000). Mean VGAS was significantly lower in control subjectthan in protocols A, B and C (P=0.000, P=0.000and P=0.000, respectively). There was nosignificant difference between mean VGAS of protocol A and B (P=0.334). Mean VGASwas lower in protocol C than in protocol A (P=0.008) and B (P=0.049).Conclusion: Tubevoltage of protocol C is acceptable or not in this result, and we suggest the reference forVGAS scores for acceptable image.