Dose Optimization in Chest Radiography: System and Model Characterization via Experimental Investigation

The main purpose of this paper is to analyze the digital radiographic methodologies used in diagnostic investigation, in order to reduce radiation doses to the patients by assuring a good quality of the images. To this end, the main parameters influencing the absorbed dose during radiographic exams and the effect of the human body on X-ray attenuation were investigated. It is generally understood that radiographic techniques need an appropriate choice of the operative parameters as functions of patients´ characteristics, with the aim of providing the minimum dose that is compatible with an image that satisfies the goal of the examination and has a good signal-to-noise ratio. In an effort to identify an optimized radiographic protocol, the correlation between body size and radiation dose was investigated.