Pediatric Interventional Neuroradiology

Doses to the brain associated with pediatric interventional neuro-radiology procedures

The use of medical interventional radiologic techniques in which fluoroscopic imaging is used to guide catheters in blood vessels has increased exponentially in recent years. These procedures can often result in substantial radiation exposure to the patient. For that reason, REB dosimetrists are collaborating with interventional fluoroscopists to estimate radiation absorbed doses to patients, in particular, to the brain of pediatric patients undergoing neuro-radiologic procedures. In this work, both the average brain dose and the spatial pattern of dose delivered to the brain is being estimated considering various assumptions on the use of static examination fields and moving examination fields. In addition to dose estimation, REB dosimetrists are collaborating with statisticians in REB to estimate lifetime risks of developing radiation-related brain tumors as a consequence of the exposure.