Radiation dose by spiral CT and conventional tomography of the sternoclavicular joints and the manubrium sterni

OBJECTIVE DESIGN AND PATIENTS: Conventional frontal tomography of the sternum has to some extent been replaced by spiral computed tomography (CT). The objective of this study was to analyse this change of procedure in terms of dosimetry by measurement of the radiation dose to individual organs using an anthropomorphic Rando Alderson phantom. The total effective radiation dose in examination of the sternoclavicular joints and the manubrium sterni was found to be lower using spiral CT than conventional tomography, the values being 0.6 and 0.8 mSv, respectively. As spiral CT is diagnostically comparable and in some respects superior to tomography, its use is recommended for studies of the sternum.