Dear AuntMinnie Member,
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) this week announced its much-anticipated plan to reduce pediatric radiation dose, telling scanner manufacturers that it will soon require them to consider the special requirements of imaging children when developing systems that use ionizing radiation.
While the new initiative represents an expansion of the FDA's regulatory authority, the plan was widely praised by imaging vendors and radiologists alike. The agency is consulting with stakeholders throughout radiology via meetings and public comments, developing a program that recognizes the unique requirements involved in imaging children.
The FDA's move comes not a moment too soon. Radiology has -- rightly or wrongly -- come under scrutiny for a series of widely publicized incidents of radiation overdose. And research studies are revealing that even "normal" levels of radiation being used vary widely and may be too high at many sites.
It's hoped that the new FDA initiative will reassure parents that it's safe to send their children into the imaging suite, in addition to spurring radiology providers to focus even more closely on dose reduction. Read more about the new plan in our CT Digital Community by clicking here.
Pediatric radiation registry
While the FDA plan focuses on manufacturers, what's being done about radiology providers? Because the agency gives physicians significant leeway in how they practice medicine, it's largely up to radiologists themselves to tackle the dose issue.
Their approach is the subject of another article in our CT Digital Community this week. International editor Eric Barnes profiles work under way by pediatric radiologists to develop better metrics for measuring radiation dose delivered to children, an initiative that includes a new dose registry specifically for kids.
The cornerstone of the registry, called the Quality Improvement Registry in CT Scans in Children (QuIRCC), is a new set of protocols intended to help radiology facilities "child-size" their scanning protocols. Learn more by clicking here, or visit our CT Digital Community at ct.auntminnie.com.
