A rational approach to the clinical use of cumulative effective dose estimates.

Abstract

This article will address ongoing efforts to track cumulative dose estimates of patient radiation exposure that have the potential to transform radiation protection research. There is no clear consensus on how to use this information clinically. A rational consideration of this question reveals that until the linear no-threshold model is supplanted, cumulative dose estimates are of little clinical relevance and never constitute a logical reason to avoid an imaging evaluation that is otherwise medically indicated.