• Journal of radiological science and technology
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• v.30 no.1
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• pp.13-23
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• 2007

In recent years, mammography system is changed rapidly from conventional screen-film system to digital system for application to screening and diagnosis. Digital mammography system provides several advantages over screen-film mammography system. According to the information provided by the manufacturer, digital mammography system offers radiation dose reduction in comparison with screen-film mammography system, because of digital detector, particularly direct digital detector has higher x-ray absorption efficiency than screen-film combination or imaging plate(IP). We measured average glandular doses(AGD) in screen-film mammography(SFM) system with slow screen-film combination, computed mammography(CM) system, indirect digital mammography(IDM) system and direct digital mammography(DDM) system using brest tissue-equivalent phantom(glandularity 30%, 50% and 70%). The results were shown as follows : AGD values for DDM system were highest than those for other systems. Although automatic exposure control(AEC) mode was selected, the curve of the AGD values against thickness or glandularity increased significantly for the SFM system with the uniform target/filter(Mo/Mo) combination. Therefore, the AGD values for the high energy examinations were highest in the SFM system, and those for the low energy examinations were highest in the DDM system. But the curve of the AGD values against thickness and glandularity increased gently for CM system with the automatic selection of the target/filter combination (from Mo/Mo to Mo/Rh or from Mo/Rh to Rh/Rh), and the AGD values were lowest. Consequently, the parameters in mammography for each exposure besides detection efficiency play an important role in oder to estimate a patient radiation dose.

• Progress in Medical Physics
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• v.20 no.1
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• pp.21-29
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• 2009

Breast cancer is the most common form of cancer among korean woman. Therefore, the early detection activities of breast cancer such as breast self-examinations, clinical breast examinations, mammography are important. A yearly mammography examination has been recommended for women aged 40 and older for the early detection of breast cancer in asymptomatic periods. However, the glandular tissue of breast is the most radiation-sensitive tissue, and the determination of average glandular dose (AGD) forms an important part of the quality control of the mammographic systems. Because of the difficulty of estimating AGD directly, it is often estimated from the measurements of the incident air kerma and by applying the appropriate conversion factors. The primary objective of this study was to standardize the method of measuring AGD. The secondary objective was to evaluate the relationships between AGD per various composition and thickness of the breast using Monte Carlo simulations. As a result, we standardized the method of measuring AGD according to International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) guidelines (CoP: an international code of practice). Overall, AGD for mammographic practice in Korea was less than 3.0 mGy recommended by the Korea Food and Drug Adminstration (KFDA) protocol, and Korean Institute for Accreditation of Medical Image (KIAMI). The measured and simulated AGD for a given condition were calculated as 1.7 and 1.6 mGy, respectively. For the AGDs obtained, there was no significant difference between them. The simulated AGD was dependent on the fraction of glandular tissue of the breast. The AGD increases with increasing of the breast glandularity due to increasing absorption of low energy photons. The AGD also increases as a function of breast thickness. In conclusion, the results of this study could be used as a baseline to establish a reference level of radiation dose in mammography.

• Journal of radiological science and technology
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• v.29 no.4
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• pp.267-274
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• 2006

The evaluation of GB stones with ultrasound has proved to be useful procedure in patient with symptoms of cholelithiasis. GB is evaluated for size, wall thickness, presence of internal reflections within the lumen and posterior acoustic shadowing or enhancement in Ultrsonography. The patient position should be shifted during procedure to demonstrate further the presence of stone within the GB. Patient scanned at the Rt. subcostal region in supine, right lateral, Lt. down decubitus, and upright sitting position. So GB stone should shift to dependent area of GB. Often, GB is not markedly distended in the presence of cholethiasis, and so the diagnosis becomes more difficult. One of the more difficult areas for detection of a GB stones are embeded in the cystic duct region. And since the GB is adjacent to the duodenum and hepatic flexure, its may be difficult to visualizing a GB stone. When patient study position changes frome supine to other position, stones displaced the site. But if its are polyps, not changes the site whatever patient positions. It is very important to what make different GB stones or polyps. We have studied about mobility of GB stones according to the patients position(supine, Lt. down decubitus, $30^{\circ} LAO. sitting and hand-knee). So we have a result, stones wherever localized within the GB, changed 100% its position in the hand-knee position and the others appeared at least 90%. In this study, when a large stones are located through fundus-body and body-neck, does not changing the stones position in spite of varied patient's positions. But hand-knee positions can identified GB stones, because its make changed the position of stons from posterior wall to anterior wall within the GB. We recommend the hand-knee position for differentiation GB stones from polyps.