MADRID, 13 (EUROPA PRESS)
La Federation of associations for the defence of public health (FADSP) ensures that in Spain are posters CT scans (CT) “at an alarming rate” in recent years, which in his view is causing radiation doses “unnecessary” for many patients.
Thus emerges from a report of recommendations to increase the radiation protection of patients of this entity, after having observed an increased use of these techniques in checks of health, such as screening of certain diseases or “whole body”, and explorations “just in case” or “because we were more relaxed”.
Although most of radiological scans are below the 100 millisievert (mSv), there is a substantial increase in the risk, according to the report the FADSP, due to “increasing exploration repetition and the cumulative effect, which gives rise to an increase in the effective doses of studies inversely proportional to its body size”.
In addition, the case is “particularly worrying” in children and young people – most vulnerable by greater life expectancy, high radiosensitivities and lack of adaptation of existing equipment-, in whom the radiosensitivities multiply between 2.5 and 10, in the case of the newborn.
“Radiology is an essential pillar of the medical diagnosis, and correctly indicated CT studies can redirect the handling of patients, increase their health and their lives,” say the authors of the report.
However, recognise their overuse has made “skip alarm” because the radiation can have non-stochastic effects, such as the increase of cancer, a risk “still limited by patients”.
Therefore, and in order to standardize and rationalize its use, proposed the implementation of protocols of consensus of radiological applications to avoid “insofar as possible” the discretion and existing variability currently in follow-up imaging of patients with the same process and similar seriousness, given the absence of reference guides updated in the national system of health (SNS).
In addition, criticize that not all equipment available on the market radiate equally, “exist a wide variability in the dose given by the TC of various commercial houses”.
“Radiological protection in the acquisition of new equipment should prioritize and should there be limits of dose for each type of CT scan study approved by the society of Radiology and accessible for practitioners”, say.
They proposed the creation of A DOSIMÉTRICA primer
Similarly, recommended the introduction of a dosimétrica primer, as it is already done in Basque country, in all communities allowing to publicize how much radiation dose received each patient, “a pressing decision and a right of patients, especially of Spanish children and young people, which will also help to reduce unnecessary studies”.
Also opt for informing patients of the risks and benefits of exploration which employ ionizing radiation, and create a population registry of cancer for better understanding of environmental factors and behaviour of the disease in Spain.
On the other hand, and taking into account the economic crisis, the FADSP proposes “enhancing the rationality” and “avoid the unnecessary”, replacing the professional time “bad employee” in other more necessary explorations or activities for which “never enough time” as the introduction of protocols of consensus at the level of the SNS, research in health services, trainingteaching and the relationship between the levels of care.
