Radiation exposure of the staff during standardised radiography of dogs and cats

The knowledge of the radiation exposure of the staff involved in X-ray examinations is one precondition for an optimisation of radiation protection. Hence the radiation exposure of the staff during X-ray examinations of dogs and cats was investigated in the Clinic for Small Animals. The study includes at least ten measurements for each of thirteen X-ray examinations of a dog and four of a cat. The equivalent doses of eye lens, thyroid, chest, hands, gonads, and lower leg were measured using TLD (LiF:Mg,Cu,P). The maximum values of 44.3 and 48.3 microSv were measured on the eye lens and the thyroid, respectively. The median and mean values of the equivalent doses on the seven measuring positions with the exception of eye lens (6.0 microSv) are lower than 5 microSv per radiograph. More than 95% of the equivalent doses on chest, hands, gonads, and lower leg are smaller than 2 microSv. Particularly eye lenses and thyroid are exposed to measurable doses. Altogether the radiation exposure of the staff is relatively low. Hence a manual fixation of animals is justifiable if the fundamental rules of radiation protection are observed.