Estimating Effective Doses of Critical Organs Due to Abdomen and Pelvic CT Scans using ImPACT Dose Tool

Mohammad Javad Tahmasebi Birgani^1,2, Morteza Tahmasebi³, Ali Yadollahpour^1*, Mohammad Reza Deevband⁴, Mohammad Hossein Jamshidi¹ and Maryam Talaie Gomary²

¹Department of Medical Physics, Faculty of Medicine, Ahvaz Jundishapur University of Medical Sciences, Ahvaz, Iran. ²Department of Radiation Therapy, Golestan Hospital, Ahvaz Jundishapur University of Medical Sciences, Ahvaz, Iran. ³Department of Radiology, Golestan Hospital, Ahvaz Jundishapur University of Medical Sciences, Ahvaz, Iran. ⁴Department of Physics and Medical Engineering, Faculty of Medicine, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.

Abstract: Using computed tomography (CT) scans in clinical diagnosis has been dramatically increased during recent years. This technique is associated with high levels of radiation dose to patients compared to other imaging methods. Therefore, using accurate and precise methods of estimating the absorbed dose in CT scans is of prime importance. The present study aims to estimate the absorbed and effective doses due to abdomen and pelvic CT scans using ImPACT dose tool. Demographic data and dosimetry data the CT scan of the abdomen and pelvis for 52 patients were used to calculate the critical organs’ absorbed and effective doses. The data of CT scans were registered into ImPACT dose tool. In addition, a new equation for estimating the body effective dose using body mass index (BMI) was proposed. The findings showed that the absorbed dose of the most organs was within the dose thresholds recommended by the ICRP103. In addition, the averaged effective dose was less than the predicted value by ICRP-103. Furthermore, a new equation was proposed to estimate the effective dose of the body as a function of patient’s BMI. The estimated values by this equation were well in agreement with the calculated dose by ImPACT (R2>0.95). Using our proposed equation for the effective dose calculation, the effective dose of a patient during an abdomen and pelvis CT scan can be estimated.  

Keywords: Computed Tomography; Organs Dose; Effective Dose; ImPACT Dose Tool

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