Patient exposure during plain radiography and mammography in Japan in 1974-2014

We investigated changes in the entrance skin dose (ESD) and the mean glandular dose (MGD) during plain radiography or mammography in Japan from 1974 to 2014. Surveys regarding the conditions used for plain radiography and mammography were performed throughout Japan in 1974, 1979, 1989, 1993, 1997, 2001, 2003, 2007, 2011 and 2014. The anatomical regions considered were categorised as follows: skull anteroposterior (AP), lumbar AP, lumbar lateral (LAT), pelvis (AP), ankle, chest posteroanterior (PA), Guthmann (lateral pelviography for pregnant women), infant hip joint and mammography. The doses for all anatomical regions decreased from 1974 to 1993. The MGD for mammography remained low from 1993 to 2014, and the ESDs for chest (PA) radiography trended upward. After the 2000s, the use of digital imaging increased in Japan. This is the first long-term study to examine changes in ESDs and MGDs in Japan.