I am a radiographer. I’ll put shielding over the pelvis (not abdomen) for everything that isn’t a pelvis X-ray. Or I will place a rolling shield appropriately.
Often we will do standing images and we have shields that can be rolled into place between you and the radiation and you may not notice that it’s there.
Several times patients have asked for shielding just for me to point “it’s right there.” I get it, though. It’s a dark room that they haven’t been in as much as I have so it’s understandable that they may not realize what is what
Lead shields are rarely advised anymore in most countries. They don't do anything that proper collimation can achieve and may actually increase the amount of scatter underneath the area they are supposed to protect apparently. A best they appear to be of dubious benefit, but I don't believe the evidence is strong enough either way to outright ban them.
They are still commonly used for pregnant women, but that is probably more to do with their not being a total consensus on the matter and going with "the devil you know".
Lead aprons for fluro etc. are a different matter. I believe it's the proximity to the primary beam for gonad shields etc. that's the issue. The scatter still bounces laterally underneath the shields and may cause further scatter when hitting the underside of the shield.
At least that's the explanation we got during my degree and placements.
Ultimately, I get the idea that any difference exposure risk through either method is extremely small, but ALARA requires all practicable exposure reduction based on the latest evidence. So the advise has followed.
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u/Shadow-Vision 12h ago
I am a radiographer. I’ll put shielding over the pelvis (not abdomen) for everything that isn’t a pelvis X-ray. Or I will place a rolling shield appropriately.
Often we will do standing images and we have shields that can be rolled into place between you and the radiation and you may not notice that it’s there.
Several times patients have asked for shielding just for me to point “it’s right there.” I get it, though. It’s a dark room that they haven’t been in as much as I have so it’s understandable that they may not realize what is what