| Wen Daguang,Song Tingni,Zhang Xiaoyong,et al.Impact of lead apron placement on radiation dose in automatic tube current modulation CT chest scans and on gonadal radiation dose: A phantom study[J].Chinese Journal of Radiological Medicine and Protection,2026,46(5):471-477 |
| Impact of lead apron placement on radiation dose in automatic tube current modulation CT chest scans and on gonadal radiation dose: A phantom study |
| Received:August 12, 2025 |
| DOI：10.3760/cma.j.cn112271-20250812-00290 |
| KeyWords:Computed Tomography Lead shielding Automatic exposure control (AEC) |
| FundProject:四川大学华西医院学科卓越发展1·3·5工程项目(ZYGD23024) |
| Author Name | Affiliation | E-mail | | Wen Daguang | Department of Radiology, West China Hospital of Sichuan University, Chengdu 610041, China | | | Song Tingni | Department of Radiology, West China Hospital of Sichuan University, Chengdu 610041, China | | | Zhang Xiaoyong | Philips Healthcare Clinical Research Department, Chengdu 610041, China | | | Peng Jing | Philips Healthcare Clinical Research Department, Chengdu 610041, China | | | Song Jian'an | Fluke Test Instruments (Shanghai) Co., Ltd., Shanghai 200335, China | | | Ye Shuoqi | Siemens Shanghai Medical Equipment Ltd., Shanghai 201318, China | | | Tian Yi | Siemens Shanghai Medical Equipment Ltd., Shanghai 201318, China | | | Li Zhenlin | Department of Radiology, West China Hospital of Sichuan University, Chengdu 610041, China | | | Xia Chunchao | Department of Radiology, West China Hospital of Sichuan University, Chengdu 610041, China | xiachunchao@wchscu.cn |
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| Abstract:: |
| Objective To investigate the effects of different lead apron placement positions on gonadal scatter dose, scan dose metrics, and interference with tube current modulation during multi-model CT chest scans and to propose an optimized shielding distance protocol. Methods Chest CT scans were performed on an anthropomorphic phantom using five Siemens CT models with varying detector widths: a 16-row Scope (19.2 mm), a 32-row Go Up (22.4 mm), a 64-row Flash (38.4 mm), a 96-row Force (57.6 mm), and a photon-counting CT (57.6 and 19.2 mm). The lead apron was placed with its superior edge at 0, 2, 4, and 6 cm from the inferior edge of the scan field, with an unshielded group serving as control. Recorded parameters included volume computed tomography dose index(CTDIvol), dose length product(DLP), gonadal dose measured with an RaySafe X2(RX2)air ionization chamber, and tube-current distribution. Results The optimal shielding position was closely related to detector width. For detector widths of 19.2-22.4 mm, a 2-cm distance resulted in differences of <2% in CTDIvol and DLP compared with the unshielded group. For detector widths of 38.4 and 57.6 mm, a 6-cm distance was required to eliminate significant differences (ΔCTDIvol ≤ 0.072 mGy, ΔDLP ≤ 2.1 mGy·cm). At these optimized positions, the simulated ovarian dose reduction ranged from 55.6% to 70.3% across all scanners, while the increase in chest dose was ≤2.1%. Male gonadal doses fell below the detection limit of the instrument for all shielding positions. Close-range shielding (0 cm) caused abnormal tube-current increases (>20%) in the most caudal slices of the scan field. The number and extent of affected slices increased with detector width (e.g., up to 75 mm for Force with lead apron at 0 cm), and this effect was eliminated when the shield was placed farther from the scan area. Conclusions The placement of the lead apron should be individualized according to detector width: 2 cm for detectors of 19.2-22.4 mm, and 6 cm for detectors of 38.4 and 57.6 mm. This strategy ensures stable chest dose metrics while significantly reducing ovarian scatter dose (>55%), providing an evidence-based approach for optimizing clinical radiation protection. |
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