Ocular radiation protection efficiency and ergonomic performance of a novel Shoulder-Mounted radiation shield for interventional procedures.

PURPOSE: The importance of ocular radiation protection for interventionalists is increasingly recognized. This study compares ocular radiation protection efficiency and ergonomic performance of a novel shoulder-mounted radiation shield with those of a conventional head-mounted shield, aiming to provide a new and optimized ocular radiation protection solution for interventional procedures.

METHODS

In this phantom study, the simulated operator's ocular doses were measured under various radiation protection configurations during coronary angiography. Head load was measured using a pressure transducer, and finite element analysis simulated cervical intervertebral disc stress. A user survey assessed wearing comfort and operational flexibility of the two shields.

RESULTS

Compared to no shielding, the novel shoulder-mounted shield combined with the ancillary shields achieved an average ocular dose reduction of 94.2%, surpassing the average reduction of 90.4% attained by the conventional head-mounted shield combined with the ancillary shields (both p < 0.01). Compared to the head-mounted shield, the shoulder-mounted shield effectively reduced the load on the head and cervical intervertebral discs, decreasing the stresses in the cervical intervertebral discs by up to 51.0% in the horizontal view and by up to 24.1% in the 45° downward view. The user survey indicated the shoulder-mounted shield provided better wearing comfort than the head-mounted shield (p < 0.001) with comparable operational flexibility (p = 0.301).

CONCLUSIONS

The novel shoulder-mounted shield could provide better ocular radiation protection efficiency and ergonomic performance compared to the conventional head-mounted shield. This study presents a new and optimized ocular radiation protection solution for interventional procedures that effectively balances radiation safety and wearing comfort.