Dose evaluation and quality criteria in dental radiology

Radioprotection in dental radiology is of particular interest in the framework of the Revised Medical Exposure Directive (MED) for the great number of examinations involving the adult as well as the paediatric population (Article 9: Special Practice). The present study is intended to find the quality criteria of orthodontic imaging and for evaluating the dose absorbed within the dental and maxillary volume in connection with radiological examinations performed with either spiral CT, dental panoramic tomography (DPT) or teleradiography. The X ray dose to organs sited in the body, neck, ocular and intracranial area was measured using lithium fluoride dosemeters, positioned in a Rando phantom. Quality criteria have been established by an expert radiologist by considering the diagnostic information obtained in the images. The dosimetric data obtained were comparable with other authors' results, although with some differences due to technical characteristics. These data are useful for choosing the patient's diagnostic path, considering the radiobiological risk associated with increasing orthodontic imaging.