TY - JOUR
T1 - Underestimation of Radiation Doses by Compliance of Wearing Dosimeters among Fluoroscopically-Guided Interventional Medical Workers in Korea
AU - Lee, Won Jin
AU - Jang, Eun Jin
AU - Kim, Kyeong Seo
AU - Bang, Ye Jin
N1 - Funding Information:
This work was supported by the National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF) grant funded by the Korea government (MIST) (No. 2020R1A2C1008891).
Publisher Copyright:
© 2022 by the authors.
PY - 2022/7
Y1 - 2022/7
N2 - This study aimed to estimate the level of underestimation of National Dose Registry (NDR) doses based on the workers’ dosimeter wearing compliance. In 2021, a nationwide survey of Korean medical radiation workers was conducted. A total of 989 medical workers who performed fluoroscopically-guided interventional procedures participated, and their NDR was compared with the adjusted doses by multiplying the correction factors based on the individual level of dosimeter compliance from the questionnaire. Ordinal logistic regression analysis was performed to identify the factors for low dosimeter wearing. Based on the data from the NDR, the average annual effective radiation dose was 0.95 mSv, while the compliance-adjusted dose was 1.79 mSv, yielding an 89% increase. The risks for low compliance with wearing a badge were significantly higher among doctors, professionals other than radiologists or cardiologists, workers not frequently involved in performing fluoroscopically-guided interventional procedures, and workers who did not frequently wear protective devices. This study provided quantitative information demonstrating that the NDR data may have underestimated the actual occupational radiation exposure. The underestimation of NDR doses may lead to biased risk estimates in epidemiological studies for radiation workers, and considerable attention on dosimetry wearing compliance is required to interpret and utilize NDR data.
AB - This study aimed to estimate the level of underestimation of National Dose Registry (NDR) doses based on the workers’ dosimeter wearing compliance. In 2021, a nationwide survey of Korean medical radiation workers was conducted. A total of 989 medical workers who performed fluoroscopically-guided interventional procedures participated, and their NDR was compared with the adjusted doses by multiplying the correction factors based on the individual level of dosimeter compliance from the questionnaire. Ordinal logistic regression analysis was performed to identify the factors for low dosimeter wearing. Based on the data from the NDR, the average annual effective radiation dose was 0.95 mSv, while the compliance-adjusted dose was 1.79 mSv, yielding an 89% increase. The risks for low compliance with wearing a badge were significantly higher among doctors, professionals other than radiologists or cardiologists, workers not frequently involved in performing fluoroscopically-guided interventional procedures, and workers who did not frequently wear protective devices. This study provided quantitative information demonstrating that the NDR data may have underestimated the actual occupational radiation exposure. The underestimation of NDR doses may lead to biased risk estimates in epidemiological studies for radiation workers, and considerable attention on dosimetry wearing compliance is required to interpret and utilize NDR data.
KW - badge
KW - fluoroscopically-guided interventional procedures
KW - hospital workers
KW - occupational exposure
KW - thermoluminescent dosimetry
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85135120426&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.3390/ijerph19148393
DO - 10.3390/ijerph19148393
M3 - Article
C2 - 35886244
AN - SCOPUS:85135120426
SN - 1661-7827
VL - 19
JO - International journal of environmental research and public health
JF - International journal of environmental research and public health
IS - 14
M1 - 8393
ER -