Radiation dose reduction in CT of the pediatric pelvis.

PURPOSE: To determine whether a lower radiation dose technique can be used for computed tomography (CT) of the pediatric pelvis without significant loss of diagnostic image quality. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Thirty-six pediatric patients underwent CT at 80 mAs (experimental group), and 42 underwent CT at 240 mAs (control group). Anatomic details, image quality, and the degree of confidence in reaching a diagnosis were graded on a scale of 1 (poor) to 4 (excellent). RESULTS: The difference in perceived image quality between the experimental and control groups was not statistically significant. The mean scores for scans evaluated by the first reader were 3.88 for the experimental group and 3.92 for the control group (P = .2804). The mean scores for the second reader were 3.78 and 3.77 for the experimental and control groups, respectively (P = .8131). CONCLUSION: A substantial dose reduction can be achieved if pelvic CT is performed at 80 mAs, without a recognizable deterioration of diagnostic image quality.