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The abdominal radiation doses for paediatric patients undergoing X-ray examinations at southern Saudi Arabia

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Abstract

This study aims to estimate radiation doses for paediatric patients undergoing abdominal X-ray examinations in Najran, Saudi Arabia, through evaluation of the entrance surface doses using DoseCal software. Two X-ray units were used at a paediatric referral hospital. A total of 216 patients were examined with an age range between 0 and 7 years. The mean ESDs were found to be 0.042 and 0.101 mGy, for abdomen anteroposterior (AP) and posteroanterior (PA) respectively. The results are useful to the National Centre for Radiation Protection in Saudi Arabia and other professional organizations elsewhere, to set up safety protocols to prevent paediatric patients from needless radiation and to establish diagnostic reference levels (DRLs).

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Acknowledgements

The author would like to thank Dr. M. K. Saeed for his invaluable contribution in dose calculations. The cooperation of Najran MCH, especially the radiographers and radiologist at the Radiological Department, was crucial for the study.

Funding

This study was not funded by any one.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Vice Rector for Academic Affairs, Dean of College of Medicine and Supervisor of Health Colleges, Najran University, P.O Box 1988, Najran, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

    Jobran Miree Alqahtani

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  1. Jobran Miree Alqahtani
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Correspondence to Jobran Miree Alqahtani.

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Conflict of interest

The author declares no potential conflict of interest with respect to the authorship and/or publication of this article.

Ethical approval

The study was approved by the Scientific Research Ethical Committee of the college of medicine at Najran University.

Informed consent

Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study, and/or their parents. The research was reviewed and approved through the scientific research ethics committee of college of medicine at Najran University.

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Alqahtani, J.M. The abdominal radiation doses for paediatric patients undergoing X-ray examinations at southern Saudi Arabia. Australas Phys Eng Sci Med 40, 427–432 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13246-017-0553-3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s13246-017-0553-3

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