Thyroid dose distribution in dental radiography

R. G. Bristow, R. E. Wood*, G. M. Clark

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

The anatomic position and proven radiosensitivity of the thyroid gland make it an organ of concern in dental radiography. A calibrated thermoluminescent dosimetry system was used to investigate the absorbed dose (μGy) to the thyroid gland resultant from a minimum irradiated volume, intraoral full-mouth radiography technique with the use of rectangular collimation with a lead-backed image receptor, and conventional panoramic radiography performed with front and rear lead aprons. Use of the minimum irradiated volume technique resulted in a significantly decreased absorbed dose over the entire thyroid region ranging from 100% to 350% (p < 0.05). Because this intraoral technique results in radiographs with greater image quality and also exposes the thyroid gland to less radiation than the panoramic, this technique may be an alternative to the panoramic procedure.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)482-487
Number of pages6
JournalOral Surgery, Oral Medicine, Oral Pathology
Volume68
Issue number4 part 1
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 1 Jan 1989

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