Medical imaging radiation exposure fell by 20% over past decade

Radiation dose from medical imaging has dropped substantially in the U.S. over the past 10 years, bucking a nearly quarter-century-long trend in rising exposure.

That’s according to research published March 17 in Radiology that analyzed changes in per capita exposure from 2006 to 2016. A large driver of this fall is attributable to a decrease in nuclear medicine procedures and technological advances in computed tomography scanning, authors of the study noted.

“One important factor is the dose modulation techniques available on most CT scanners in the country,” said Mahadevappa Mahesh, PhD, professor of radiology and cardiology at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in a statement. “The second factor is that overall CT detectors are becoming very efficient in the sense that they can utilize less radiation to create the same quality images.”

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