Production of a diagnostic quality fluoroscopic image is predicated on the delivery of a controlled amount of x-radiation to the input phosphor of an image amplifier. Variations in patient thickness and limitations on table top dose rate make it difficult to define simple operating protocols. The work reported on here attempts to resolve this problem by presenting experimental data showing the variation of table top dose with kVp and mA for various water phantom thicknesses required to yield acceptable radiation levels at the intensifier input phosphor. Possible algorithms for resolving the conflict between dose rate and image quality are developed and discussed. The possibility of minimizing patient dose rate for a predescribed spacial resolution is suggested as a fruitful avenue for new work.

Date Published: 15 November 1978
PDF: 5 pages
Proc. SPIE 0152, Recent and Future Developments in Medical Imaging I, (15 November 1978); doi: 10.1117/12.938195

Published in SPIE Proceedings Vol. 0152:
Recent and Future Developments in Medical Imaging I
Norman A. Baily, Editor(s)