CT technologists have a new tool they can use to reduce radiation exposure to their patients and to themselves. Positioning children and infants has always been difficult for CT technologists. The children are scared and confused and do not understand why they must stay still. Even if a CT technologist managed to position a child, the child would often move after the CT technologist left the room to take the image.  This meant that a CT technologist would need to hold the child still while the image was being taken, and in the process receive a totally unnecessary dose of radiation.

Now there is a new option, and it is called the universal octopaque. It is basically a padded board that a CT technologist can gently strap a child to. The child is first wrapped with a blanket for comfort, and then strapped down. The child’s head is restrained too, with big pads on each side of the head.  Using this device, the child can be safely restrained so that a good image may be taken on the first try, instead of having to repeat the image and increase the radiation dose to the child. Also, this allows the CT technologist to be safely away from the imaging process.

The universal octopaque also allows for a CT technologist to take images from angles that would have been difficult to achieve while just holding a child.

This device is useful in several other modalities as well, allowing MRI technologists, nuclear medicine technologists, and radiation therapists to remain safe while performing pediatric imaging. 

Learn about hiring a CT technologist.

Source:

1. Femia, John (2006, October 6) Keeping Kids Still, and RTs Safe from Radiation. Advance for Imaging and Radiation Thereapy Professionals, 6

This blog is now focused on laboratory specialties. This article is here for your information only, as jobs are no longer provided for any radiation technician specialties.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention considers thirty percent of American adults to be obese, and many areas of imaging are struggling to provide these people with good images and equipment that fits them.

Excess fat often impacts image quality, causing the patient to need more tests and sometimes a longer hospital stay.  Also, equipment is stressed more and needs to be replaced more often when being used on obese patients.

The larger the body, the harder it is for an ultrasonographer to get a clear picture. Also, it is more physically demanding for an ultrasonographer to image an obese person, because they must push as close to the internal structures as possible, so if a person is very overweight, the ultrasonographer has to push as far into the excess fat as they can.

As long as the patient fits into the machine, a CT technologist or MRI technologist isn’t affected as much as an ultrasonographer, but there are still issues.  A CT technologist can adjust the scan time and range to image large patients more successfully, but this requires that th CT technologist be very knowledgeable and it requires that a larger dose of radiation be given to the patient.  MRI technologists will probably be impacted by large patients the least, because machines are coming out in models offering better service for large patients.

Large patients are also a challenge for a mammographer because positioning is tricky and patients get a false positive twenty percent more often than normal or underweight patients do.

There are some advances being made to improve imaging for large patients, but they come at a higher health care cost.

Learn about hiring a CT technologist, MRI technologist, mammographer, or ultrasonographer.

1. Long, Sarah (2006, October 2) Limited by Body Habitus. Advance for Imaging and Radiation Thereapy Professionals, 21-23

I believe the risks of radiation exposure due to CT Scans are concerning, particularly in children. There are times when CT scans are needed and should not be avoided, but there may be too many being done in the US to offset the risks.

CT scans are worrisome because the level of radiation is usually much higher than with other types of radiologic scans, and because a recent survey of radiologists and ER physicians showed that 75% underestimated the radiation dose from a CT scan. A little more than half of radiologists and 91% of ER Doctors did not think that CT scans posed a risk of cancer, although The New England Journal of Medicine conducted a study concluding that CT scans at the current level use could cause from 1.5-2% of cancers in the future. There have been other studies done that show ultrasonography and MRIs, which both use lower levels of radiation, can sometimes been practically used as alternatives to CT scans.

When a radiologic scan is absolutely necessary, and when an alternative method of radiologic scanning can not be substituted, there are several ways by which CT scan exposure can be limited. Newer CT systems have several different control options to automatically limit exposure. Certain areas of the body that are more sensitive to radiation can be shielded to reduce risk. Exposure can be limited by using available software to determine how much radiation is necessary by age and size in order to get a good scan. CT Technologists should make sure to follow all protocols. Finally, increased communication between hospitals can prevent duplicate CT scans being taken for the same condition.

Learn more about hiring CT Technologists.

Souces:

1. David J. Brenner, Ph.D., D.Sc., and Eric J. Hall, D.Phil., D.Sc. (2007) Computed Tomography-An Increasing Source of Radiation Exposure. The New England Journal of Medicine http://content.nejm.org/cgi/content/full/357/22/2277
2. Ward, Joyce (2008, March 31) CT Scanning and Kids. Advance for Imaging and Radiation Therapy Professionals, 16-17
3. Ward, Joyce (2008, March 31) Risky Business: The CT Detate. Advance for Imaging and Radiation Therapy Professionals, 16-17