In an effort to reduce the radiation dose delivered by computed tomography (CT) scans, staff at a community-based hospital developed a comprehensive CT radiation dose reduction program which has allowed them to reduce the radiation dose delivered by CT scans at their facility, according to an article in the August issue of the Journal of the American College of Radiology. CT is an essential tool for the accurate diagnosis of disease and injury but is associated with radiation doses higher than those of conventional X-ray imaging. Although high doses of radiation are known to increase the risk for cancer, the effects of the much lower doses used in diagnostic imaging are not conclusively known.
