• Anto Sedlic, Christina M Chingkoe, David K Tso, Sandro Galea-Soler, and Savvas Nicolaou.
• Vancouver General Hospital, University of British Columbia, 899 West 12th Avenue, Vancouver, BC, Canada, V5Z 1M9, tonysedlic@gmail.com.
• Emerg Radiol. 2013 Oct 1; 20 (5): 401-8.

AbstractThe purpose of this study is to determine whether a single acquisition whole-body trauma multi-detector CT scan is able to reduce resuscitation time, scan time, and effective radiation dose without compromising diagnostic quality in the setting of polytrauma. Retrospective analysis of 33 trauma patients undergoing single acquisition whole-body CT with injury severity scores of ≥ 16 was compared to 34 patients imaged with a segmented whole-body CT protocol. Time spent in the emergency department, effective radiation dose, image quality, and mortality rates were compared. The single acquisition group spent 53.7 % less time in the emergency department prior to imaging (p=0.0044) and decreased scanning time by 25 %. The protocol yielded a 24.5 % reduction in mean effective radiation dose (24.66 mSv vs. 32.67 mSv, p<0.0001). The image noise was similar in both groups. Standardized mortality ratios were comparable. The single acquisition protocol significantly reduces time spent in the emergency department by allowing faster imaging at a lower radiation dose while maintaining image quality. Other contributors to reduction in radiation dose include use of dual-source CT technology, removal of delayed CT intravenous pyelogram, and arm positioning.

22 keywords...

hide…