Optimal Beam Quality for Chest Digital Radiography

To investigate the optimal beam quality for chest computed radiography (CR), we measured the radiographic contrast and evaluated the image quality of chest CR using various X-ray tube voltages. The contrast between lung and rib or heart increased on CR images obtained by lowering the tube voltage from 140 to 60 kV, but the degree of increase was less. Scattered radiation was reduced on CR images with a lower tube voltage. The Wiener spectrum of CR images with a low tube voltage showed a low value under identical conditions of amount of light stimulated emission. The quality of chest CR images obtained using a lower tube voltage (80 kV and 100 kV) was evaluated as being superior to those obtained with a higher tube voltage (120 kV and 140 kV). Considering the problem of tube loading and exposure in clinical applications, a tube voltage of 90 to 100 kV (0.1 mm copper filter backed by 0.5 mm aluminum) is recommended for chest CR.