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.	HPS and CRCPD Proclaim 8-14 November 2009 as National Radiation Protection Professionals Week
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.	2010 HPS Midyear Topical Meeting Radiation Risk Communication to the Public 24-27 January 2010 Albuquerque, NM
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07 November 2009

Answer to Question #5095 Submitted to "Ask the Experts"

Category: Medical and Dental Equipment/Shielding — Shielding

The following question was answered by an expert in the appropriate field:

I work in the OR (operating room) and am exposed to fluoroscopy. I am looking into purchasing a lead apron and have several questions. Most wrap-around aprons have 0.5mm lead equivalences in the front and 0.25 in the back. Is it important to have 0.5 in the back as well, even if I typically am facing the c-arm of the unit? What about scatter? The additional cost is significant, but worth it if I need the extra protection. I am of childbearing age and do not want to negatively affect my future children. Is "lead equivalent" material okay to use? Is it as good as lead? What questions should I ask prior to purchasing this "lighter version?" Do I need to protect my eyes from exposure with special glasses?

For starters, your facility should provide you with adequate type and a sufficient number of lead aprons. In the event that you are being permitted to choose your own, most aprons are 0.5 mm lead equivalent, as required by regulations in many states. Some aprons go all the way around the body with either 0.25 or 0.5 mm lead equivalent and are typically used in facilities such as cardiac catheterization labs where some individuals may be exposed from the sides or behind. Many aprons go with the smaller amount because the amount of exposure to the back may be a small amount compared to exposure to the front.

If you are only in c-arm procedures where you always face the x-ray source, you can use a lead apron that only covers the front of your body. Scatter comes from the patient and, to a lesser extent, the table and will strike that part of your body that is turned toward the x-ray source.

Most lead aprons are stated in terms of "lead equivalence" because they are either made of lead-impregnated rubber (or some other flexible substance) or another material that simulates the shielding properties of lead. If you are interested in the lightweight aprons that use something other than lead, you should take a look at a graph of the lead equivalency by x-ray energy. Some of the lightweight products do not provide the same protection at higher energies.

As far as lens-of-eye protection, experience has shown that most individuals do not wear lead glasses due to their being cumbersome and heavy. If you participate in a high volume of procedures and/or long fluoroscopy times (cases > 20 minutes) you may want to consider them.

Ken "Duke" Lovins, CHP

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