A Study on the Environmental Condition and Safety in Dental Radiography Room

치과방사선 촬영실의 환경 및 안전성에 관한 연구

This study is designed to conduct a questionnaire research into the safety control and the actual condition of radiography by working with dentistry belonging to university hospitals, dental hospitals and dental clinics for three months ranging from August, 2003 to October, 2003. The researcher came to the following conclusions. 1. The research on the current condition of possessed radiational equipment shows that 61.2 percent of the subjects had one intraoral radiation medicine and that 70.1 percent of the subjects had more than one extraoral radiation medicine and that 37.3 percent of the subjects had more than one digital radiation medicine. 2. Most of intraoral radiography (82.1%) was conducted by dental hygienists, and 7.5 percent of intraoral radiography was conducted by nurse aids. On the other hand, most of extraoral radiography (76.6%) was conducted by dental hygienists and digital radiography was conducted by dental hygienists(60.6%), dentists(32.0%) and radiographer(80.0%). 3. The less-than 1-meter-long distance between cone and the radiographer accounted for 44.8 percent. And the more-than 1.6-meter-long distance accounted for no more than 13.4 percent. The exposure time per standard film which was adjusted to each part accounted for 71.6 percent. Fixing the film on the part of healthy patients accounted for 76.1 percent. Fixing the film of elderly patients and children patients by the radiographer accounted for 43.3 percent. 4. The average daily photographing frequency of standard films stood at six to ten pieces(31.3%), and the average weekly photographing frequency of bitewing films stood at less than one piece(47.8%), and the dentistries where bitewing films were not employed accounted for 25.4%. The subjects whose average weekly photographing freqeuncy of occlusal films stood at less than a piece accounted for 59.7 percent. The dentistries whose average weekly photographing frequency of pediatric films stood at one to five pieces accounted for 41.8 percent. In case of panorama & cephalo, one to five pieces on a weekly average accounted for 36.2 percent. The dentistries whose average daily photographing frequency of digital radiation medicine stood at less than 1 piece accounted for 40.0 percent. 5. The research on the use of protective clothes shows that pregnant ·women only accounted for 31.3 percent. In regard to the use of protective clothes in case of the radiographers fixing films, the cases where no protective clothes were employed accounted for 88.1 percent. The reason was said to he attributable to the trouble related to wearing the clothes(54.2%). 6. The survey on the measurement of exposure dose shows that the cases where no measurement was made accounted for 76.1 percent. As far as the measurement methods of exposure dose was concerned, the employment of film badge accounted for 68.8 percent. The subjects turned out to conduct measurement of exposure dose every third month, which accounted for 43.8 percent. The barriers to the measurement of measurement of exposure dose were attributable to the recognition that a little amount of exposure dose need not be measured(29.9%). 7. The survey on the distinction of radiation rooms and clinic rooms reveals that the cases where radiation rooms exclusively existed accounted for 67.2 percent. 43.3 percent of the subjects turned out to have only one protective garment, and 49.3 percent of the subjects proved to conduct a periodical checkup of radiational equipment. The survey on the examination certificates of radiational generators and protective facilities indicates that 80.6 percent of the subjects had the certificates. The research also shows that the subjects with the marks indicating the radiational areas accounted for 70.1 percent. And trustees turned out to handle developing solutions and fixing solutions.