Samsung Seoul Hospital and Samsung Electronics publish white paper on 'Radiation Optimization through S-AEC'

Samsung Seoul Hospital and Samsung Electronics announced on the 4th that they published a white paper on the topic of 'Optimization of Medical Radiation through S-Auto Exposure Control (AEC): Clinical Application in Abdominal Imaging'.



S-AEC is a function of Samsung Electronics' mobile digital X-ray device that automatically detects the area of ​​the body that requires dose adjustment and irradiates the dose optimized for the patient's body type.



Samsung Electronics' mobile digital X-ray device GM85. [Photo = Samsung Electronics]



Even in portable shooting, images of consistent quality are obtained, and safety is enhanced by minimizing the patient's radiation dose. In addition, radiologists can focus only on patient shooting without having to adjust the dose according to the patient's body type.



This white paper was conducted using Samsung Electronics' mobile digital X-ray GM85, with Professor Myung-jin Jeong of the Department of Radiology at Samsung Seoul Hospital as the first author, to conduct pre- and post-abdominal X-ray examinations.



The study was conducted by dividing 421 patients into a group that did not use S-AEC (Manual) and a group that used S-AEC with two conditions that had different target radiation doses to the abdomen, and evaluating the differences between the three conditions using analysis of variance (ANOVA).



In the S-AEC group, the target radiation dose was set to 5 and 3.54 uGy (microgray) to confirm the effect of reducing the patient's exposure dose while maintaining the diagnostic image quality.



As a result of the study, the S-AEC group, which set the target radiation dose to 5 and 3.54 uGy, showed that the dispersion of the radiation exposure index (EI) was reduced by 60% and 55%, respectively, compared to the S-AEC non-use (Manual) group, thereby improving the consistency of image quality.



The dose area product (DAP) was reduced by 27% and 44%, respectively, depending on the target radiation dose, and it was confirmed that the diagnostic image quality was maintained by providing appropriate visualization for each organ, such as the liver, kidneys, and intestines. The study confirmed that the S-AEC for patients of various body types automatically adjusts the radiation dose according to the conditions.



Professor Myung-Jin Jeong of the Department of Radiology at Samsung Seoul Hospital said, "In mobile digital X-ray imaging, the abdomen has a lower tube voltage than the chest, and the thickness difference is large depending on the patient's body type, making it difficult to achieve appropriate exposure," and added, "The results of this study are significant in that it allowed us to reduce the radiation dose by more than 40% while maintaining the overall image quality in a clinical environment."



Professor Myung-Jin Jeong of the Department of Radiology at Samsung Seoul Hospital. [Photo = Samsung Electronics]



Team Leader Woo-Young Jang of the Digital X-ray Business Team at Samsung Electronics' Medical Device Business Division said, "With the implementation of the S-AEC function in mobile digital X-ray imaging, we have strengthened safety by minimizing the patient's radiation dose in addition to providing excellent image quality," and added, "Samsung Electronics aims to present new possibilities for patient radiation dose management through this."



Meanwhile, the white paper published this time is a follow-up study on thoracic imaging presented at the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA2024) last year. In a study of chest imaging, the use of S-AEC also resulted in a 61% reduction in the dispersion of the exposure index (EI) compared to not using S-AEC (Manual), which improved the consistency of image quality, and a 17% reduction in the dose area product (DAP).





https://www.inews24.com/view/blogger/1819458