Objectives. A large-scale survey of doses to patients undergoing the most frequent radiological examinations was carried out in health services in São Paulo
Conclusions. Despite the reduced number of ESD values and rooms for the pediatric patient group, it is recommended that practices in chest examinations be revised and that specific national reference doses and image quality be established after a broader survey is carried out.Thermoluminescent dosimetry, radiology, Brazil.
ABSTRACTThe radiation protection system for patients subjected to medical exposures in diagnostic radiology is governed by principles of justification and optimization, including the consideration of diagnostic reference levels (DRLs). Therefore, a diagnostic radiological procedure is justified if the benefits to the individual patient from the medical diagnostic obtained with the radiological image balance the individual detriment the exposure may cause. Once a medical exposure has been justified, the principle of optimization is applied-that is, the radiological examination must be carried out with equipment and exposure parameters that ensure doses to patients as low as reasonably practicable, consistent with the intended diagnostic purpose (1). For diagnostic medical exposures, this value is interpreted as being the lowest dose possible, which is consistent with the required image quality that is necessary for obtaining the desired diagnostic information.From these principles, and considering that all medical exposures bring a potential health benefit to patients, dose