Imaging

Reduce the dose without compromising diagnosis and therapy. Really?

Hildegard Kaulen

6min
Hildegard Kaulen
Published on July 2, 2020
To reduce risk of cancer the radiologist has to reduce radiation dose.
X-ray imaging always involves a compromise between dose and diagnostic needs: as much dose as needed for optimal imaging, as little dose as possible.

Varying dose values



The ALARA principle

Technological innovations have helped to reduce dose and still get a high quality image.
Constant technological innovation has resulted in a continually improved ratio between the size of the focal spot, the exposure time, and the dose.

Hardware solutions

Intelligent software not only makes automatic adjustments before scanning, but also enables the radiologist to use individual doses which results in reduced dose.
Automatic adjustments to the clinical questions and the patient's anatomy through software enables the use of individually adapted doses.

Software solutions


By Hildegard Kaulen

Hildegard Kaulen, PhD, is a molecular biologist. Following positions at Rockefeller University in New York and Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, she now works as a freelance science journalist for newspapers and scientific magazines.