Radiation Health & SafetyQuestion 26 of 100
An assistant notices the unit is still set for an adult molar exposure while the next patient is a small child. Which single change most directly lowers the child's dose?
a.Increasing the kVp setting
b.Decreasing the exposure time according to the manufacturer's pediatric settings
c.Using a shorter position-indicating device
d.Removing the aluminum filter
Explanation
Reducing exposure time lowers the total number of photons delivered and is the most direct way to reduce a pediatric patient's dose, consistent with ALARA. Raising kVp increases beam energy rather than reducing dose in this situation. A shorter PID increases divergence and irradiated volume, and removing filtration would allow more low-energy photons into the patient, raising skin dose.
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