Re: MDL and Dose Effects - opinionated response -Reply

["H.Wade Patterson" <hwade@talltown.com>]

David Scherer wrote:
> I beg to differ.  A great deal of time, money, and effort are spent  > on keeping medical exposures ALARA, as well.  This has been one of 
>the primary  goals of medical physics for many years now.  In fact, 
>I remember a  radiologist's concern about using digital radiography 
>for neonatal chest > x-rays because the dose was increased from 3 
>mrad to 5.  
>Concern over 2 mrad > per exam, despite numerous advantages 
>(eliminate retakes, improve images, > wider access to images, etc.) 
>qualifies as an extreme version of ALARA in my book.
> 
> Regards,
> Dave Scherer
> scherer@uiuc.edu

Dave:
You're citing the exception that proves the rule.
Not one dentist or internist in a 1000 with an xray machine knows what
ALARA means, let alone keeping ALARA records, setting ALARA goals etc,
ad nauseum. Sure dentists often use a Pb impregnated rubber blanket, but
they have no idea what the dose saving is, or for that matter what the
dose to the skin is from a full mouth xray. Sure, some few steps have
been taken to reduce dose from routine dental and medical xrays, but
where is the ALARA justification for those xrays in the first place.
Perhaps an ALARA discussion and justification takes place on a
case-by-case basis somewhere, sometimes, but surely not in 90%+ of all
the medical/dental xray scenarios.

Best wishes,
Wade
-- 
H.Wade Patterson
1116 Linda Lane
Lakeview OR 97630
ph 541 947-4974

"When we hold a conclusion inviolate, sometimes the assumptions require
certain adjustments."  Harold Hopfenberg, Prof. of Chem. Eng., N.
Carolina State University.