Estimation of thorium deposited in thorotrast patients by CT scanner in comparison with whole body counter.

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Abstract
The deposits of thorium dioxide in Thorotrast patients are observed in the reticulo-endotherial system, such as liver and spleen. The amounts of deposits in patients can be estimated by a whole body counter, but hospitals which have the apparatus are few. In this study the method for the estimation of thorium dioxide deposited in Thorotrast patients by a computed tomography (CT) scanner was examined and established. A relationship between the activity of Th-232 per volume and the CT number was determined with CT phantom experiments. The activity of Th-232 per volume of the spleen and the liver of Thorotrast patients were estimated by the relationship and their absorbed dose rates were evaluated. The estimates by the CT scanner were compared with those by the whole body counter. The estimates by the CT scanner of the activity per volume which is related to the absorbed dose rate was more accurate than that by the whole body counter. In the case of CT scanner, the distribution of thorium deposited in the body was obtained.
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