Medical Imaging Technology تكنولوجيا التصوير الطبي

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Browsing Medical Imaging Technology تكنولوجيا التصوير الطبي by Author "Huda Husni Mahmoud Nasser"

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    A Comparative Study of Six Software Tools Used for Estimating Fetal Radiation Dose from CT Examinations
    (Al-Quds University, 2024-11-04) Huda Husni Mahmoud Nasser; هدى حسني محمود ناصر
    The assessment of fetal radiation dose during computed tomography (CT) examinations is crucial for ensuring the safety of the pregnant women and their fetuses. This study aimed to perform a comparative analysis of six MC-based software tools (VirtualDose CT, FetalDose.org, CODE, Waza-ari, ImPACT, and CT-Expo) for fetal dose estimation in various CT examinations, assessing their reliability and performance. The analysis involved estimating fetal radiation doses for pregnant women in our sample set using these tools. The six software tools were used to estimate fetal radiation doses for twenty-six pregnant participants undergoing twenty-seven different CT examinations, including head, cervical spine, chest, abdomen-pelvis, lumbar spine, and ankle scans. Single measures and average measures Intraclass Correlation Coefficient (ICC) values at 95% Confidence Interval (CI) were calculated, to assess the reliability of the six software tools together, and the pairs of software tools separately as well. Bland-Altman plots were also utilized to assess the agreement between some pairs of software tools. A comparative analysis for the six software tools’ performance in estimating fetal dose from CT examinations was also conducted. Total performance score was calculated for each tool based on the established criteria in this study, which are considered critical in performing dose estimates to fetus, including availability of pregnant phantoms, required inputs, availability of CT procedures, availability of CT scanner models, details of resulting fetal and maternal doses, number of available phantoms, cost, ease of use, and compatibility with mobile systems. The resulting fetal dose estimates were all within the ICRP-recommended threshold for deterministic effects, specifically below 100 milligray (mGy). Average measures ICC value for the six software tools was found to be 0.96 (95% CI: 0.91 – 0.98), indicating excellent reliability, whereas single measures ICC value for the six software tools was found to be 0.80 (95% CI: 0.63 – 0.90), indicating moderate to excellent reliability of an individual software tool with the others. VirtualDose CT and FetalDose.org showed the highest single measures ICC value across all pairs of software tools at 0.98 (95% CI: 0.96 – 0.99), indicating excellent reliability of both tools. Whereas CODE software showed the lowest single measures ICC values with all other software tools, indicating a low reliability of this software tool. Bland-Altman plot showed a mean difference of 0.79 for VirtualDose CT and FetalDose.org software tools, with limits of agreement ranged from – 2.45 to 4.03, indicating a good agreement between both tools, and confirming their reliability as well. For the comparative analysis of the software tools’ performance in calculating fetal dose from CT examinations, VirtualDose CT was identified as the best performer according to the predefined criteria evaluated in this study with a total performance score of 485.25. Ultimately, VirtualDose CT, with its superior performance and high reliability, was recommended as a standout tool for fetal dose estimates from CT examinations.