A Rational Approach to the Clinical Use of Cumulative Effective Dose Estimates

OBJECTIVE: This article will address ongoing efforts to track cumulative dose estimates of patient radiation exposure that have the potential to transform radiation protection research. CONCLUSION: There is no clear consensus on how to use this information clinically. A rational consideration of this question reveals that until the linear no-threshold model is supplanted, cumulative dose estimates are of little clinical relevance and never constitute a logical reason to avoid an imaging evaluation that is otherwise medically indicated.