Radiation absorbed in maxillofacial imaging with a new dental computed tomography device.
OBJECTIVE
The purpose of this investigation was to measure the tissue-absorbed dose and to calculate the effective dose for the NewTom 9000, a new generation of computed tomographic devices designed specifically for dental applications. Comparisons are made with existing reports on dose measurement and effective dose estimates for panoramic examinations and other computed tomographic imaging modalities for dental implants.


METHODS
Thermoluminescent dosimeters were implanted in a tissue-equivalent humanoid phantom at anatomic sites of interest. Absorbed dose measurements were obtained after single and double exposures. The averaged tissue-absorbed doses were used for the calculation of the whole-body effective dose.


RESULTS
The effective dose for imaging of maxillomandibular volume with a NewTom 9000 machine is 50.3 muSv.


CONCLUSIONS
The effective dose with the NewTom 9000 machine is significantly less than that achieved with other computed tomographic imaging methods and is within the range of traditional dental imaging modalities.
Mah
James K
JK
School of Dentistry, Division of Craniofacial Sciences and Therapeutics, University of Southern California, Los Angeles 90089-0641, USA. jamesmah@usc.edu
Danforth
Robert A
RA
Bumann
Axel
A
Hatcher
David
D
D006801:Humans; D007568:Jaw / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D019047:Phantoms, Imaging; D011829:Radiation Dosage; D011861:Radiography, Dental / Q000379:methods*; D013819:Thermoluminescent Dosimetry; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed / Q000379:methods*