Organ point dose measurements in clinical multi slice computed tomography (MSCT) examinations with the MOSkinTM radiation dosimeter

This study reports on the application of the MOSkinTM dosimeter in MSCT imaging for the real-time measurement of absorbed organ point doses in a tissue-equivalent female anthropomorphic phantom. MOSkinTM dosimeters were placed within the phantom to measure absorbed point organ doses for 2 commonly applied clinical scan protocols, namely the renal calculus scan and the pulmonary embolus scan. Measured organ doses in the imaged field of view were found to be in the dose range 4.7-9.5 mGy and 16.2-27.4 mGy for the renal calculus scan and pulmonary scan protocols respectively. For the derivation of effective dose, using the more recent ICRP 103 tissue weighting factors (w T) compared to that of the ICRP 60 wT resulted in a difference in the derived effective dose by up to 0.8 mSv (-20%) in the renal calculus protocol and up to 1.8 mSv (18%) in the pulmonary embolus protocol. This difference is attributed to the reduced radiosensitivity of the gonads and the increased radiosensitivity of breast tissue in the latest ICRP 103 assigned wT. The results of this study show that the MOSkinTM dosimeter is a useful real-time tool for the direct assessment of organ doses in clinical MSCT examinations. © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.