Objective: Therapy for lung cancer has recently evolved to include molecular targeted therapy and adequate amounts of lung cancer tissue are needed to identify particular phenotypes. For this purpose, quite a number of investigations on diagnostic bronchoscopy have been undertaken. Corollary to the increasing number of transbronchial biopsies for peripheral pulmonary nodules is the increased chances of radiation exposure during fluoroscopy. Our aim was to determine the dose and risk factors of radiation exposure to medical staff.
Methods: Endobronchial ultrasonography with a guide sheath under X-ray fluoroscopy was performed on 132 cases of peripheral pulmonary lesions. The radiation exposure dose to medical staff (operator physicians, assistant physicians, nurses and radiological technologists) was measured.
Results: The median time of fluoroscopy was 7.6 min (range 1.5-23.9). The median radiation exposure dose to operator physicians was 12 μSv/exam (range 1-99), while that of the other medical staff was lower. In a multivariate analysis, body mass index and the location of the radial ultrasound probe had significantly higher odds ratios.
Conclusions: The risk factors for an increased radiation exposure dose were patients' BMI and the location of the radial ultrasound probe. But even then, the radiation exposure dose to medical staff during endobronchial ultrasonography with a guide sheath was very low, especially for nurses and radiological technologists in whom the exposure dose was negligible.
Keywords: EBUS-GS; body mass index; bronchoscopy; fluoroscopy; lung cancer; radial eBUS; radiation.