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07 October 2008

Answer to Question #6555 Submitted to "Ask the Experts"

Category: Medical and Dental Equipment/Shielding — Equipment

The following question was answered by an expert in the appropriate field:

The hemodynamic equipment in our catheterization labs gives us the fluoroscopy dose in Gy ⋅ cm² and I need to convert that to rads. I understand from your Web site that 1 Gy = 1 Joule/kilogram and also equals 100 rad. If a case results in a fluoroscopy dose of 127 Gy ⋅ cm², how would I convert that into rads?

You have the correct conversion (1 Gy = 100 rad) for the dose portion, however, you need to know the area of the skin exposed to the x-ray beam (cm²) in order to convert from dose area product (DAP) to dose. Typically this is not available with the DAP systems. You can contact your facility's medical physicist to give you an estimate of the patient entrance skin exposure (ESE) at a known technique to estimate the radiation dose to any particular patient.

Ken "Duke" Lovins, CHP

Answer posted on 20 June 2007. The information and material posted on this Web site is intended as general reference information only. Specific facts and circumstances may alter the concepts and applications of materials and information described herein. The information provided is not a substitute for professional advice and should not be relied upon in the absence of such professional advice specific to whatever facts and circumstances are presented in any given situation. Answers are correct at the time they are posted on the Web site. Be advised that over time, some requirements could change, new data could be made available, or Internet links could change. For answers that have been posted for several months or longer, please check the current status of the posted information prior to using the responses for specific applications.