SIR issues new patient radiation safety guidelines
The Society of Interventional Radiology (SIR), which has previously published clinical practice guidelines on radiation dose management, has released a new document providing guidance on the safe use of fluoroscopy on pediatric and adult patients.
The radiation management guideline, tailored to interventional radiology practice, emphasizes the need for increased diligence to safely manage the risks of radiation exposure from such procedures as embolization (including chemoembolization for cancer); transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic shunt creation for liver disease; and renal and/or visceral artery angioplasty and/or stent placement.
"The safe use of fluoroscopy has always been a primary concern for interventional radiologists," said Michael S. Stecker, MD, an interventional radiologist and assistant professor at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston.
SIR said that the guidelines were developed over the past two years, and are available for use both in the United States and in Europe, having been created in collaboration with and endorsed by the Cardiovascular and Interventional Radiological Society of Europe.
The guidelines will be issued as a supplement to the July issue of the Journal of Vascular and Interventional Radiology. The 376-page collection, guest-edited by John F. Cardella, MD, includes quality improvement guidelines, safety guidelines new from 2003, consensus documents, credentialing statements, policy and position statements and technology assessment documents.
The radiation management guideline, tailored to interventional radiology practice, emphasizes the need for increased diligence to safely manage the risks of radiation exposure from such procedures as embolization (including chemoembolization for cancer); transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic shunt creation for liver disease; and renal and/or visceral artery angioplasty and/or stent placement.
"The safe use of fluoroscopy has always been a primary concern for interventional radiologists," said Michael S. Stecker, MD, an interventional radiologist and assistant professor at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston.
SIR said that the guidelines were developed over the past two years, and are available for use both in the United States and in Europe, having been created in collaboration with and endorsed by the Cardiovascular and Interventional Radiological Society of Europe.
The guidelines will be issued as a supplement to the July issue of the Journal of Vascular and Interventional Radiology. The 376-page collection, guest-edited by John F. Cardella, MD, includes quality improvement guidelines, safety guidelines new from 2003, consensus documents, credentialing statements, policy and position statements and technology assessment documents.