The changing use of pediatric CT in Australia

Z Brady; AV Forsythe; JD Mathews

Journal article

The changing use of pediatric CT in Australia

Z Brady, AV Forsythe, JD Mathews

Pediatric Radiology | SPRINGER | Published : 2016

DOI: 10.1007/s00247-016-3563-5

Abstract

Background: Despite the medical benefits of CT, there are concerns about increased cancer risks following CT scans in childhood. Objective: To assess Australian temporal trends in pediatric CT scans funded through Medicare over the period 1985 to 2005, as well as changes in the types of CT scanners used. Materials and methods: We studied de-identified electronic records of Medicare-funded services, including CT scans, that were available for children and adults younger than 20 years between 1985 and 2005. We assessed temporal trends using CT imaging rates by age, gender and anatomical region. Regulators provided CT scanner registration lists to identify new models installed in Australia and ..

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University of Melbourne Researchers

Anna Forsythe Author

John Mathews Author

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Grants

Funding Acknowledgements

This study was supported by project grants 509190 and 1027368 from the National Health and Medical Research Council. We thank state and territory radiation regulators for data on CT scanner registrations, the Department of Health for the provision of detailed Medicare data sets and Mita Pederson, chief medical imaging technologist at The Royal Children's Hospital Melbourne, for CT billing data.