Estimation of Effective Doses to Patients in Whole Body Computed Tomography with Automatic Tube Current Modulation Systems

Computed tomography (CT) is a digital radiological modality which has been classified as the largest source of medical radiation exposure. In this study, we estimated the effective dose to patients undergoing CT examinations using information obtained from DICOM images, including tube current, patient size and positioning, collimation etc. The custom code was used to calculate the conversion factors between an effective dose and air kerma length product. Their values are 0.0232 mSv/(mGy cm) and 0.0263 mSv/(mGy cm), for male and female patients, respectively. The effective dose for the whole-body CT is estimated to be 8.7 mSv.