WE‐B‐214‐01: CT Dose Reduction Strategies

The number of CT examinations performed in the United States has been growing at an annual rate of approximately 10% leading to more than 70 million procedures in 2008. The apparent increase in the number of CT procedures,new protocols and the associated radiation dose and risks has drawn considerable attention. It appears that the so‐called ‘slice wars’ with regard to the number of slices provided per CT gantry rotation may be reaching a plateau and increasing concerns about radiation dose due to CT examinations are fueling the efforts to reduce radiation dose and leading to the beginning of the so‐called ‘dose wars’.A number of radiation dose reduction strategies are been considered and many new are been developed. At the same time, efforts to optimize CT protocols, dose modulation techniques and further improvement in image quality and image quantificationsare gaining ground. There is an increasing demand for the medical physicists to assist clinicians in developing, reviewing and recommending changes to the clinical protocols. Therefore, it is critical for the medical physicists to become familiar with the various dose reduction strategies that are currently available and thenew technologies that are been developed. In this lecture, variousCT dose reduction strategies will be discussed. Educational Objectives: 1. To become familiar with radiation dose reduction strategies in CT. 2. To understand various image quality improvements in CT.