Impact of Operators' Height on Individual Radiation Exposure Measurements during Catheter-Based Cardiovascular Interventions

Aim: This study is aimed to evaluate the impact of an operators' height on personal radiation exposure measurements during cardiovascular interventional procedures. Based upon both clinical data and phantom simulation, a new approach for monitoring an individual's exposure is proposed. Methods: The clinical component of this study was composed of the operators and staff in a single center full service cardiovascular laboratory being divided into 2 groups based upon their height: group A included all individuals whose height was <165 cm; group B included the individuals >165 cm. All operators wore a standard TLD dosimeter at all times with doses recorded for 12 months. To support these clinical findings, a second investigation was performed utilizing a phantom. Measurements were obtained at 100 and 135 cm from the radiation source during simulation of different cardiovascular interventional procedures. Results: The radiation dose measured from the personal dosimeters identified that Group A, operators <165 cm, had significantly higher doses than those recorded in Group B, operators >165 cm, when compared among individuals performing similar tasks (physicians, technicians, and nurses): 4.55 ± 4.0 (Group A) versus 1.95 ± 1.0 (Group B) mSv (P < 0.01). During procedure simulation with the phantom, the doses measured were similarly significantly higher if measured at 100 cm than at 135 cm from the radiation source. Conclusion: This study suggests that the height from radiation source does impact the measured dose from an operator worn personal TLD. This was operator specific, consistent thought-out multiple procedures, and confined with phantom measurements.