Radiation Safety at the Time of Patient Discharge in Persons Undergoing Fluorine-18 Fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) Positron Emission Tomography (PET/CT) Imaging

Aim: F-18 FDG (fluorodeoxyglucose) PET/CT is an imaging method increasingly used in nuclear medicine due to the rising incidence of cancer in society. Additionally, since this imaging is performed with higher photon energy, it significantly increases anxiety among hospital staff. In our study, we aimed to measure the radiation dose rate ratio released to the environment and evaluate environmental radiation exposure in patients who underwent PET/CT with F-18 fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) at the time of discharge.Materials and Methods: Dose rates at 0.5 meters (m), 1 m, and 2 m from the anterior chest of 123 patients (M/F: 69/54) who underwent F-18 FDG PET/CT imaging in the Department of Nuclear Medicine PET/CT were measured using a survey meter.Findings: Patients received an average of 8.05 mCi (millicurie) of radioactive material and waited in the clinic for 78.34 minutes. Following the imaging, the average radiation dose rates at 0.5 m, 1 m, and 2 m were found to be 11.33 ± 2.67, 5.7 ± 1.3, and 2.3 ± 5 µSv/h, respectively (Tables 1, 2, 3) (Figure 1). There was a statistically significant (p < 0.0001) negative correlation between the duration of hospital stay after F-18 FDG injection and the F-18 FDG dose injected into the patient and the dose rates measured at all three distances. (Table 4, 5) (Figure 1).Conclusion: Our study showed that the F-18 FDG PET/CT scans done in the Nuclear Medicine Department were for diagnostic purposes. This means that, according to international and national radiation safety rules, the department is exposed to low doses and does not pose a threat to the environmental radiation safety. Additionally, the staff member or caregiver receives a significantly lower dose as they are farther from the patient.