RESUMEN
BACKGROUND: Fluoroscopy-guided diagnostic and interventional cardiology (IC) procedures help to identify and treat several problems associated with the heart. However, these procedures expose patients, cardiologists, radiographers, and nurses to radiation doses. Due to the risk that ionizing radiation poses, concerns have been raised and studies are continually being done to ensure that optimization is achieved during such procedures. This study assessed patient radiation dose during diagnostic and interventional cardiology procedures as well as right heart studies at a tertiary hospital in Ghana to formulate the facility's diagnostic reference levels (DRLs) for optimization purposes. As this study was the first of its kind in Ghana, it was a vital step towards dose optimization within the local department, as well as contributing to future DRLs in Ghana. METHODS: The study collected dose (air kerma, and kerma area product (KAP) and procedural data, and assessed any correlation between parameters such as fluoroscopy time and KAP, and between body mass index (BMI) and KAP. The DRL values were determined as the 75th percentile level for the dose distribution for the various IC procedures including percutaneous coronary interventions (PCI), coronary angiography (CA), and right heart catheterization (RHC). Data were analyzed using SPSS version 23. RESULTS: CA was the most frequently performed IC procedure (77.3%), while RHC was the least recorded (3.3%). The highest mean KAP was observed during the PCI procedure. The proposed diagnostic reference levels (DRLs) were 162.0 Gy.cm2 (PCI), 69.4 Gy.cm2 (CA), 39.8 Gy.cm2 (RHC) and 159.9 Gy.cm2 (CA+PCI). Patients who presented for the CA+PCI and RHC procedures received the highest and lowest mean KAP of 159.9 Gy.cm2 and 39.8 Gy.cm2 of radiation respectively. CONCLUSION: This study, therefore, concludes that there is a need for dose optimization of radiation exposures for IC procedures at the cardiothoracic center in Ghana.