Can pediatric radiography be practiced appropriately in a hospital without a dedicated diagnostic imaging unit? A case study

Due to Norway’s population density, demographic scatter and topography, performing radiological examinations in children in the same unit as in adults is quite common despite international guidelines recommending use of dedicated pediatric radiology units. Children examined in non-dedicated pediatric facilities are therefore a unique patient group who requires special attention. This study investigates pediatric radiography practice at a small local hospital lacking a dedicated pediatric radiology department by comparing it with the ideals of good practice as stated by international agencies. The aspects analyzed are organization, radiation safety and optimization

Can pediatric radiography be practiced appropriately in a hospital without a dedicated diagnostic imaging unit? A case study.

Introduction Due to Norway’s population density, demographic scatter and topography, performing radiological examinations in children in the same unit as in adults is quite common despite international guidelines recommending use of dedicated pediatric radiology units. Children examined in non-dedicated pediatric facilities are therefore a unique patient group who requires special attention. This study investigates pediatric radiography practice at a small local hospital lacking a dedicated pediatric radiology department by comparing it with the ideals of good practice as stated by international agencies. The aspects analyzed are organization, radiation safety and optimization. Methods The approach is qualitative, based on participant observation, document investigation and interviews with radiographers. Results Radiologists evaluated referrals. Age specific pediatric CT-protocols were being used. Awareness of the greater radiation risk in children and radiation safety concern were common among the radiographers. Some radiographers had experience from pediatric imaging departments while none of them had postgraduate studies in pediatric radiography. Lack of extensive practice due to reduced pediatric patient volume makes sometimes the examination of children be a challenging task. Communication with children seemed to go well. Conclusion Despite variations in experience with children among radiographers and lack of specialization in pediatric radiography, the practice is largely in accordance with international recommendations. Radiation protection and optimization requirements met, although the departmental organization slightly diverges from prevailing guidelines. Slightly different practice and experience with children among radiographers indicate the need for special guidelines for pediatric imaging for non-dedicated pediatric radiology departments

Can pediatric radiography be practiced appropriately in a hospital, without a dedicated diagnostic imaging unit? A case study.

Introduction Due to Norway’s population density, demographic scatter and topography, performing radiological examinations in children in the same unit as in adults is quite common despite international guidelines recommending use of dedicated pediatric radiology units. Children examined in non-dedicated pediatric facilities are therefore a unique patient group who requires special attention. This study investigates pediatric radiography practice at a small local hospital lacking a dedicated pediatric radiology department by comparing it with the ideals of good practice as stated by international agencies. The aspects analyzed are organization, radiation safety and optimization. Methods The approach is qualitative, based on participant observation, document investigation and interviews with radiographers. Results Radiologists evaluated referrals. Age specific pediatric CT-protocols were being used. Awareness of the greater radiation risk in children and radiation safety concern were common among the radiographers.  Some radiographers had experience from pediatric imaging departments while none of them had postgraduate studies in pediatric radiography. Lack of extensive practice due to reduced pediatric patient volume makes sometimes the examination of children be a challenging task. Communication with children seemed to go well. Conclusion Despite variations in experience with children among radiographers and lack of specialization in pediatric radiography, the practice is largely in accordance with international recommendations. Radiation protection and optimization requirements met, although the departmental organization slightly diverges from prevailing guidelines. Slightly different practice and experience with children among radiographers indicate the need for special guidelines for pediatric imaging for non-dedicated pediatric radiology departments

Estimation of social genetic effects on feeding behaviour and production traits in pigs

Pigs are housed in groups during the test period. Social effects between penmates may affect average daily gain (ADG), backfat thickness (BF), feed conversion rate (FCR), and the feeding behaviour traits of pigs sharing the same pen. The aim of our study was to estimate the genetic parameters of feeding behaviour and production traits with statisticalmodels that include social genetic effects (SGEs). The data contained 3075 Finnish Yorkshire, 3351 Finnish Landrace, and 968 F1-crossbred pigs. Feeding behaviour traits were measured as the number of visits per day (NVD), time spent in feeding per day (TPD), daily feed intake (DFI), time spent in feeding per visit (TPV), feed intake per visit (FPV), and feed intake rate (FR). The test period was divided into five periods of 20 days. The number of pigs per pen varied from 8 to 12. Two model approaches were tested, i.e. a fixed group size model and a variable group size model. For the fixed group size model, eight random pigs per pen were included in the analysis, while all pigs in a pen were included for the variable group size model. The linear mixed-effectsmodel included sex, breed, and herd*year*season as fixed effects and group (batch*pen), litter, the animal itself (direct genetic effect (DGE)), and penmates (SGEs) as random effects. For feeding behaviour traits, estimates of the total heritable variation (T-2 +/- SE) and classical heritability (h(2) +/- SE, values given in brackets) from the variable group size model (e.g. period 1) were 0.34 +/- 0.13 (0.30 +/- 0.04) for NVD, 0.41 +/- 0.10 (0.37 +/- 0.04) for TPD, 0.40 +/- 0.15 (0.14 +/- 0.03) for DFI, 0.53 +/- 0.15 (0.28 +/- 0.04) for TPV, 0.66 +/- 0.17 (0.28 +/- 0.04) for FPV, and 0.29 +/- 0.13 (0.22 +/- 0.03) for FR. The effect of social interaction was minimal for ADG (T-2 = 0.29 +/- 0.11 and h(2) = 0.29 +/- 0.04), BF (T-2 = 0.48 +/- 0.12 and h(2) = 0.38 +/- 0.07), and FCR (T-2 = 0.37 +/- 0.12 and h(2) = 0.29 +/- 0.04) using the variable group size model. In conclusion, the results indicate that social interactions have a considerable indirect genetic effect on the feeding behaviour and FCR of pigs but not on ADG and BF. (C) 2020 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. on behalf of The Animal Consortium.Peer reviewe