From the March 2019 issue of HealthCare Business News magazine
Interventional X-ray (IXR)
Interventional x-ray is a niche application in the pediatric space. Among the many factors that make interventional x-ray procedures challenging for pediatric patients are patient size, unusual anatomy, total blood volume, and radiation exposure limitations.
Biplane purchasing decisions include the need to limit radiation exposure and the amount of contrast medium injected. Biplane images can be obtained in two orthogonal planes simultaneously with a single contrast media injection. This allows for a reduced radiation exposure and limits the volume needed for the exam. Pediatric patients can exhibit abnormal anatomy that makes accurate visualization very important.
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Over the years technology has improved to increase value in the interventional space. These advancements include faster imaging at lower frames-per-second with faster pulsing that reduces the overall radiation exposure. These systems can process images into a virtual 3D view that can be rotated to see anatomy in ways we have not been able to do in the past. Other advancements include innovative therapy and nonsurgical interventional techniques that expand life-altering and livesaving options to pediatric patients in need of advanced cardiovascular care.
Radiation Exposure
Radiation dose has always been a concern in the radiology space since the beginning – and even more so with children. Over time, more emphasis has been placed on radiation dose, but today’s technological advances have enhanced the ability to record radiation dose.
X-ray machines and CT systems are capable of recording radiation dose and adding it to the patient record through dose management software. This software is available through radiology vendors and even from third-party vendors. Dose management is especially important in the pediatric space because many children are subjected to numerous follow up CTs and/or x-rays during the course of treatment or in some cases throughout the rest of their lives.
Dose management software in association with an EMR (electronic medical record) makes it possible to track a patient’s radiation dose per exam and track the total dose the patient is being exposed to throughout their continuum of care and, ultimately, over their lifetime. This tracking ability helps us in our efforts to limit radiation exposure to both children and adults.
The goal is to enable the clinician to make appropriate decisions when it comes to imaging the child over the long term. The radiation dose calculations can be used to aid the provider in considering other imaging means to keep the child’s dose low without sacrificing outcomes. Among these are nonionizing radiation imaging techniques such as MR or ultrasound.
About the author: Cris Bennett joined MD Buyline in 2015 with more than 19 years of experience in medical imaging. He has a diverse background in general radiography, CT, MR and radiology IT.
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