The Foundation
X-ray dose optimisation has been talked about in Radiology for decades, but the practical realization has been elusive. Without image quality data that is relevant to both the clinical users, physicists, and engineers, conversations around acceptable image quality don’t connect. We accepted the challenge of bridging this gap between what clinicians see and what radiographers, physicists, and engineers need to know on the path to optimisation in radiology practice.
We also knew that without accurate knowledge of the patient size, a critical piece of the optimisation jigsaw would still be missing. The most relevant measure of patient size is not patient height, weight or age, but the amount of tissue that the x-ray beam passes through during image formation. We have performed the large-scale monte-carlo computational simulations necessary to calculate the amount of tissue in the x-ray beam from broad beam x-ray transmission. The results of these calculations are incorporated in the MyXrayDose website enabling the automated accurate quantification of the patient tissue thickness as seen by the x-ray beam.
Design Philosophy
One of our design objectives is to produce an image quality and dose management service that clinical users want to use because it delivers useful results and is a pleasure to use. If we achieved these objectives then meeting the other organizational and regulatory dose monitoring and reporting requirements would be accomplished with greater accuracy and minimal effort. As we are forging a path into new territory we have employed an agile design methodology, and include our customer feedback as an integral part of the ongoing development process.
Our Team
Our design team is made up of practicing accredited Radiology Medical Physicists, programmers, and Radiology professionals. Collectively we have many decades of experience working in Radiology and Cardiology services, and understand the pressures and complexity of these environments. Feedback from our customers is an integral part of our agile responsive design process.