The Metropolitan Area Diagnostic X-ray Equipment Quality Control System

In recent years, great importance has been placed on quality assurance and quality control for medical imaging equipment. Quality control for diagnostic X-ray equipment is largely dependent on how users maintain radiological equipment. Tokyo Metropolitan University and 13 other facilities formed a partnership to establish the Metropolitan Area Diagnostic X-ray Equipment Quality Control System, which they used on 25 diagnostic X-ray equipments over three years. Using noninvasive type instruments that was calibrated at Tokyo Metropolitan University, they measured X-ray tube voltage, X-ray tube current, radiation dose, and other parts and functions of X-ray equipment that affect performance using the same diagnostic equipment and according to the same protocol. The results indicated that testing could be carried out in all test categories with a high degree of accuracy when performed under the same conditions and that quality control was possible at all facilities in the metropolitan area. Continued implementation of the quality control system will not only insure that X-ray equipment maintain a high degree of performance and contribute to the early detection of equipment breakdown, but will also be effective in comparing how maintenance is carried out at different facilities, quantifying X-ray imaging conditions, and reducing patient exposure doses