Patient dosimetry measurements in 50 radiology departments in Belgium.

Since July 2001, the Belgian law requires a yearly quality control measurement on all medical radiological equipment. The medical physicists of the AV Controlatom are certified experts in Belgium and perform these quality control measurements, including a patient dosimetry study. In this study, patient dosimetry results since January 2002 are presented for the following examinations: chest PA and LAT, abdomen and pelvis. Since conventional film-based imaging is currently being replaced by phosphorplate technology, a comparison between both technologies is made. In some radiology departments, digital imaging is already in use. These dosimetry results are also analysed. Dose reductions of >70% can be achieved. For the chest examinations, several departments still use fluoroscopy for positioning the patient. Results show that about half of the patient dose is due to the fluoroscopy. A comparison between the dose results and the European Diagnostic Reference Levels (EDRL) is made.

European Medical Device Directive: impact on nuclear medicine.

The European Council Directive 93/42/EEC concerning medical devices (14 June 1993) assigns new responsibilities and imposes technical requirements both to the manufacturer and user of medical devices. In this paper the general outlines of the directive are discussed with a particular emphasis on the risk classification of products, the compliance and evaluation process and the CE-marking regulations. Furthermore, some practical implications are highlighted for devices and tools relevant to the field of nuclear medicine such as radiation detectors, gamma- and PET-cameras and software.