The objective of this study was to analyse the central concepts of radiography and connections between them, assumed to define the focus of the radiography science. The objective was also to define these concepts theoretically, and to formulate a model defining the focus of radiography science. Radiography refers here to radiographers' professional work, education and radiography science. The concepts of nursing, environment, health and human being were used as starting point for the study, as they are commonly applied, but not clearly defined in radiography. The study was conducted in three phases in accordance with the hybrid method of concept analysis. During the theoretical phase, the theoretical phase model and tentative definitions were developed on the grounds of literature. These were further developed during the empirical phase, as the empirical phase model was formulated on the grounds of empirical data. Data were collected in the form of interviews and written material from selected experts (n = 8). In the analytical phase, theoretical definitions and the model of the focus of radiography science were formulated as a synthesis of the results of former phases. The total number of data was 1,147 pages, and it was analysed with the method of qualitative content analysis. Based on the results, the concept of nursing was substituted with the concept of clinical radiography and radiotherapy, which was defined as radiographer's work within health care. Seamless combination of patient care and service as well as technical usage of radiation and radiation protection was found to be the core of a radiographer's work, aimed at serving the health care field as part of a multiprofessional teamwork. Essential characteristics of the work were found to be theoretical and practical-technical expertise, guiding elements, implementation as a process, and responsibility for safety as well as optimizing decision-making. Environment was defined as the physical and functional environment in health care, cultural environment, cognitive environment, and context of a radiographer's expertise. The concept of health was substituted with the concept of health and illness, which was defined as a holistic and variable state of being that is indirectly affected by radiation. A human being was defined as a dignified individual or community, which is also a holistic and variable being. Connections were found to be positive, negative, characterizing, directing, functional and experimental by nature. On the basis of the results, radiography science could be named the clinical science of radiography and radiotherapy. The model formulated in this study describes the focus of the clinical science of radiography and radiotherapy on a general level. The results may be exploited in the development of the clinical science of radiography and radiotherapy, in theory development and in education within radiography. They may also clarify the identity of this science and understanding regarding it. / Tiivistelmä Tutkimuksen tarkoituksena oli analysoida radiografian keskeisiä käsitteitä ja niiden välisiä yhteyksiä, joiden voidaan olettaa määrittävän radiografiatieteen tutkimuskohdetta. Tarkoituksena oli määritellä käsitteet teoreettisesti sekä muodostaa käsitteiden ja niiden välisten yhteyksien perusteella malli radiografiatieteen tutkimuskohteesta. Radiografialla tarkoitetaan tässä tutkimuksessa röntgenhoitajan työtä ja koulutusta sekä radiografiatiedettä. Lähtökohtana käytettiin hoitotieteen käsitteitä hoitotyö, ympäristö, terveys ja ihminen, joita on radiografiassa käytetty ja sovellettu, mutta ei täsmällisesti määritelty. Tutkimus toteutettiin kolmivaiheisesti hybridisen käsiteanalyysimenetelmän mukaan. Teoreettisessa vaiheessa muodostettiin kirjallisuuden perusteella käsitteiden työmääritelmät ja teoreettisen vaiheen malli. Empiirisessä vaiheessa muodostettiin empiirisen vaiheen malli asiantuntijoilta (n = 8) kerätyn kirjallisen ja haastatteluaineiston perusteella. Analyyttisessä vaiheessa muodostettiin tulosten systemaattiseen vertailuun perustuvana synteesinä käsitteiden teoreettiset määritelmät ja malli radiografiatieteen tutkimuskohteesta. Aineiston kokonaismäärä oli 1147 sivua, ja se analysoitiin laadullisella sisällönanalyysillä. Tutkimuksen tuloksena hoitotyö-käsite korvattiin käsitteellä kliininen röntgenhoitajan työ. Se määriteltiin röntgenhoitajan terveydenhuollossa toteuttamaksi työksi, jonka ydin on teknisen säteilynkäytön ja säteilysuojelun sekä potilaan hoidon ja palvelun saumaton yhdistäminen. Ytimen avulla työ palvelee terveydenhuollon toimintaympäristöä osana moniammatillista tiimityötä. Työn keskeiset ominaisuudet ovat teoreettinen ja käytännöllis-tekninen asiantuntijuus, ohjaavat tekijät, prosessimaisuus sekä turvallisuusvastuu ja optimoiva päätöksenteko. Ympäristö määriteltiin fyysiseksi terveydenhuollon toimintaympäristöksi, kulttuuriympäristöksi, kognitiiviseksi ympäristöksi ja röntgenhoitajan asiantuntijuuden muodostamaksi ympäristöksi. Terveys-käsite korvattiin käsitteellä terveys ja sairaus, joka määriteltiin kokonaisvaltaiseksi ilmiöksi ja muuttuvaksi tilaksi, jonka kannalta keskeisiä ovat säteilyn välilliset vaikutukset. Ihminen määriteltiin arvokkaaksi yksilöksi tai yhteisöksi, joka on kokonaisvaltainen ja muuttuva olento. Käsitteiden väliset yhteydet voivat olla positiivisia, negatiivisia, luonnehtivia ja ohjaavia yhteyksiä sekä tekemis- ja kokemisyhteyksiä. Tulosten perusteella radiografiatieteen nimeksi sopisi kliininen radiografiatiede. Tutkimuksessa tuotettu malli määrittää kliinisen radiografiatieteen tutkimuskohdetta yleisluontoisesti. Tuloksia voidaan hyödyntää lähinnä kliinisen radiografiatieteen kehittämisessä, teorianmuodostuksessa ja radiografian koulutuksessa. Tulokset voivat myös auttaa selkeyttämään kliinisen radiografiatieteen identiteettiä ja lisäämään sitä koskevaa ymmärrystä.

Syftet med studien är att undersöka fem olika mätmetoders noggrannhet för bestämning av positionen hos en ej erupterad överkäkshörntand på panoramabilder. Då allt fler panoramabilder exponeras på barn och ungdomar kan dessa användas för positionsbestämning av överkäkens hörntänder. Materialet omfattar panoramaröntgenbilder på 70 överkäkshörntänder på 47 barn och ungdomar, 9-19 år gamla. Fem mätmetoder för positionsbestämning av hörntanden med panoramabilden jämförs samt valideras med CBCT "Gold standard". 1. Vinkelmetod (Ang1); 2. Vinkelmetod (Ang2); 3. Canine Incisive Index (CII); 4. Sektormetod; 5. Vertikalmetod. Studien visade att de bästa metoderna för positionsbestämning av hörntanden är Ang1 och Ang2, samt CII, med en accuracy på 74 % -72 %, medan sektormetoden hade en accuracy på 64 %. Ingen statistiskt signifikant skillnad förelåg mellan Ang1, Ang2, CII och sektormetoden. Panoramabilden kan användas för bedömning av hörntandens position innan vidare utredning med CBCT görs.

M.Tech. / To determine whether a combination of real-time B-Mode ultrasound, Doppler Color flow and Power Doppler flow mapping would be reliable in differentiating benign from malignant breast nodules in an attempt to avoid unnecessary biopsies, where after ultrasound guidelines would be formulated. A quantitative cross-sectional comparative descriptive design in a study population which consisted of 62 women over the age of 35 years who came to Klerksdorp Radiology services for mammography. Both breast ultrasound imaging and mammography was used as a routine procedure as part of the workup for the classification of breast nodules, before histologic specimens were obtained. All nodules were classified according to the ultrasonographic BI-RADS lexicon and compared with the pathologic results. Of the 63 patients, 63 breast nodules were detected and confirmed by biopsy. Thirty seven (59%) nodules were found to be malignant and 26 (41%) were benign according to biopsy results. Mammography had 87% sensitivity and ultrasound 60% sensitivity in detecting malignancy. It is recommended that B-mode, Color Doppler flow and Power Doppler flow mapping be used in combination with mammography for screening as a gold standard.

M.Tech. (Radiography) / Knowledge and skills are related to time and become obsolete if no effort is made to update them on an ongoing basis. Continuous Professional Development (CPD) is, therefore, the effort of committed professional practitioners to maintain and broaden the knowledge and skills related to their profession, following completion of formal training. The legal obligation of healthcare professional practitioners is to provide a high standard of care and act in the best interest of patients. To achieve this, radiographers must maintain and strive to improve their professional knowledge and competence. The main aim of this study was thus to assess the diagnostic radiographers‟ CPD participation in Kenya. The study was empirical in nature and therefore relied heavily on perceptions, experiences and observations. Mail questionnaires were sent to 250 radiographers working in Kenya during the time of the study. Self- addressed and stamped envelopes accompanied the questionnaires for ease of reply. Data analysis was done using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 14.0 and the results were presented in frequency and percentage tables. Cross tabulations were employed to demonstrate and test relationships between variables. Results revealed that a large number (69%) of diagnostic radiographers in Kenya are not participating in CPD due to various barriers. The study, therefore, recommended that CPD for radiographers should be declared compulsory and penalties are introduced for non-adherence to CPD requirements. This could encourage radiographers to keep up to date with modern techniques. The SORK should provide a legal framework for CPD and legitimize the organization and implementation of CPD structures...

M.Tech. (Radiography) / The ability to think critically is a vital skill for health care professionals in an era of rapidly advancing technology. Critical thinking skills improve problem solving ability, quality of clinical service and efficiency in delivering a clinical service. Although no specific curriculum exists within the Department of Radiography for teaching critical thinking, assessments given to students progress from the lower levels of learning, which include knowledge and understanding of information in first year, to the higher levels of learning, which include analysis, synthesis and evaluation in third year. The status of the students’ ability to demonstrate critical thinking skills needed to be explored for the Department of Radiography to develop a more explicit curriculum to facilitate these skills. The research question that arose was: To what extent could third-year radiography students demonstrate critical thinking skills and how can the design and delivery of the new professional bachelor’s degree be adapted to make provision for and best facilitate the teaching of these skills? The aim of this descriptive exploratory study was to determine the ability of third-year radiography students at a comprehensive university in Gauteng, South Africa, to think critically. The study employs a descriptive exploratory design. The participants responses to vignettes (in the form of clinical scenarios) were analyzed using a Likert scale and action verbs developed for evaluating evidence of critical thinking skills, providing quantitative data. Field notes were made whilst analyzing responses to each question, providing qualitative data.

One of the serious public health problems is the Traumatic Brain Injury, also known as silent epidemic, affecting millions every year. Management of these patients essentially involves neuroimaging and noncontrast CT scans are the first choice amongst doctors. Significant anatomical changes identified on the neuroimages and volumetric assessment of haemorrhages and haematomas are of critical importance for assessing the patients’ condition for targeted therapeutic and/or surgical interventions. Manual demarcation and annotation by experts is still considered gold standard, however, the interpretation of neuroimages is fraught with inter-observer variability and is considered ’Achilles heel’ amongst radiologists. Errors and variability can be attributed to factors such as poor perception, inaccurate deduction, incomplete knowledge or the quality of the image and only a third of doctors confidently report the findings. The applicability of computer aided dianosis in segmenting the apposite regions and giving ’second opinion’ has been positively appraised to assist the radiologists, however, results of the approaches vary due to parameters of algorithms and manual intervention required from doctors and this presents a gap for automated segmentation and estimation of measurements of noncontrast brain CT scans. The Pattern Driven, Content Aware Active Contours (PDCAAC) Framework developed in this thesis provides robust and efficient segmentation of significant anatomical landmarks, estimations of their sizes and correlation to CT rating to assist the radiologists in establishing the diagnosis and prognosis more confidently. The integration of clinical profile of the patient into image segmentation algorithms has significantly improved their performance by highlighting characteristics of the region of interest. The modified active contour method in the PDCAAC framework achieves Jaccard Similarity Index (JI) of 0.87, which is a significant improvement over the existing methods of active contours achieving JI of 0.807 with Simple Linear Iterative Clustering and Distance Regularized Level Set Evolution. The Intraclass Correlation Coefficient of intracranial measurements is >0.97 compared with radiologists. Automatic seeding of the initial seed curve within the region of interest is incorporated into the method which is a novel approach and alleviates limitation of existing methods. The proposed PDCAAC framework can be construed as a contribution towards research to formulate correlations between image features and clinical variables encompassing normal development, ageing, pathological and traumatic cases propitious to improve management of such patients. Establishing prognosis usually entails survival but the focus can also be extended to functional outcomes, residual disability and quality of life issues.

Mummies have been considered as 'biologic museums' as they display vital evidence and clues about the life and death of the ancient Egyptian population who lived thousands of years ago. They also hold the secrets of the evolution of disease. The Third Intermediate Period mummies represent the mummification technique at its best. The main aim of this research is to produce a scientific study of the Third Intermediate Period mummies in the British Museum. It attempts to answer some important questions and considers to what extent a detailed radiographic investigation of a group of mummies can provide evidence about disease processes, diet, mummification techniques, funerary and medical practices within that period. Non-invasive techniques were used during this study to investigate a group of seven mummies from the collection of the British Museum. The mummies are encased in cartonnage cases except one mummy which is inside a wooden coffin. The radiological methods (i.e. X-ray radiography and CT scanning) provided new information regarding the manufacturing of cartonnage cases during that period. The detailed radiographs showed aspects of the mummification techniques that were not reported during pervious investigations. A historical account of the Third Intermediate Period was given in chapter one while chapter two provides information regarding the mummification techniques used during this historical period. Chapter three gives information on previous radiological studies and chapter four gives detailed description and photographs of the selected mummies, the subjects of this investigation. Chapter five contains a full description of the methods used during this study and the results and discussions were presented in chapter six. A catalogue with detailed information is attached as an appendix to the thesis to present the physical anthropological data and radiological finds with regards to each mummy from this selected group.

Orientador: Deborah Queiroz de Freitas França / Dissertação (mestrado) - Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Faculdade de Odontologia de Piracicaba / Made available in DSpace on 2018-08-27T00:38:46Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Lopes_LucianaJacome_M.pdf: 2079743 bytes, checksum: df9b484145571a9011ec6e478289e4c6 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2015 / Resumo: Diversos fatores influenciam o crescimento e desenvolvimento de crianças e adolescentes, dentre eles fatores ambientais e étnicos, o que faz com que distintas populações apresentem diferentes padrões de desenvolvimento. O escasso conhecimento da relação entre o desenvolvimento dentário e a maturação esquelética na população brasileira até o momento justifica a realização de pesquisas que avaliem a referida relação em indivíduos brasileiros. Portanto, o presente estudo teve como objetivo investigar a relação entre os estágios de mineralização dos dentes e os estágios de maturação esquelética da mão e punho na população brasileira. Foram selecionadas radiografias panorâmicas e carpais de 491 indivíduos (222 do sexo masculino e 269 do sexo feminino) com idades entre 7 e 17 anos. Dois radiologistas avaliaram as imagens juntos, chegando a um consenso final. Os estágios de mineralização dentária nas radiografias panorâmicas foram determinados de acordo com Demirjian e a maturação esquelética nas radiografias carpais de acordo com Grave & Brown. A média e o desvio padrão das idades cronológicas foram determinados para as três fases do surto de crescimento puberal (SCP) e a associação entre os estágios foi obtida através da análise de regressão logística multinominal ordinal. O percentual de distribuição dos dentes estudados dentre as fases de maturação também foi calculado. O segundo molar (Odds Ratio (OR) = 4,34, 95% intervalo de confiança (IC): 2,64-7,68) e primeiro pré-molar (OR = 2,45, 95% IC: 1,40-4,28) foram os melhores preditores de crescimento para o sexo feminino. Para o sexo masculino, que apresentou a mineralização dos dentes em estágios mais avançados, o segundo molar (OR = 6,80, 95% IC: 3,48-13,27), o segundo pré-molar (OR = 2,41, 95% IC: 1,24-4,43) e o canino (OR = 3,21, 95% IC: 1,38-7,50) foram os melhores indicadores. Os estágios D e E para o sexo feminino e os estágios E e F para o sexo masculino do segundo molar corresponderam aos eventos que ocorrem no início do surto de crescimento puberal. O estágio F para o sexo feminino e G para o sexo masculino do segundo molar corresponderam aos eventos que ocorrem durante o pico do SCP. No final do SCP, a maior parte dos dentes apresentaram os ápices fechados, com exceção do segundo molar no sexo feminino em que a maioria estava no estágio G. Foi possível concluir que existe associação entre os estágios de mineralização dentária e as fases de maturação esquelética em indivíduos na população brasileira e que a avaliação desses estágios é útil para estimar em que fase do SCP o paciente se encontra / Abstract: Several factors influence the growth and development of children and adolescents, including environmental and ethnic factors, so different populations show different patterns of development. The poor knowledge of the relationship between tooth development and skeletal maturity in the Brazilian population justify the need for studies to evaluate this relationship in Brazilian subjects. Panoramic and carpal radiographs of 491 subjects (222 males and 269 females), between 7 and 17 years of age were selected. Two radiologists jointly evaluated the images and reached a final consensus. The stages of tooth mineralization in the panoramic radiographs were determined according to Demirjian, while the skeletal maturity in carpal radiographs was evaluated according to the method described by Grave and Brown. The mean and standard deviations of chronological ages were determined for the three periods of pubertal growth spurt (PGS), and the association between the stages was obtained by ordinal multinomial logistic regression. The percentage distribution of the studied teeth was also calculated. The second molar (odds ratio (OD) = 4.34, 95% confidence interval (CI): 2.64-7.68) and first premolar (OD = 2.45, 95% CI: 1.40-4.28) were the best predictors of growth for females. For males with a more advanced trend in tooth mineralization, the second molar (OD = 6.80, 95% CI: 3.48-13.27), second premolar (OD = 2.41, 95% CI: 1.24-4.43), and canine (OD = 3.21, 95% CI: 1.38-7.50) proved to be the best predictors. Stages D and E for females, and stages E and F for males, of the second molar corresponded to the events that occur at the beginning of PGS. Stage F, for females, and stage G, for males, of the second molar corresponded to events that occur during the peak of the PGS. At the end of the PGS, most teeth had closed apices, with the exception of the second molar in females in which the majority was in stage G. It could, therefore, be concluded that there is an association between dental mineralization stages and skeletal maturity periods in the Brazilian population and the evaluation of these stages is useful to estimate the period of skeletal maturity / Mestrado / Radiologia Odontologica / Mestra em Radiologia Odontológica

Magister Scientiae Dentium - MSc(Dent) / The investigation was designed to evaluate the scoring systems of pitts (1984), and that of Murray and Majid(1978), when used to monitor caries progression in deciduous teeth. The evaluation.was based on the reproducibility and discrlininatory ability of the two systems. The Reproducibility Study was designed to compare the reproducibility of the two systems, and in addition, to illustrate, firstly the use of the subject as the sampling unit in measuring reproducibility, and secondly, a more sensitive method of measuring reproducibility when analysing caries progression data. The Progression Study was designed to discriminatory ability. In addition the compare use of the the effect on subject as the sampling unit in monitoring caries progression was illustrated in the analysis of this part of the investigation. A sub-sample of the posterior bitewing radiographs of 301, 5 year old children from a Duraphat clinical trial (Murray et al. 1977, Murray and Majid 1978) were re-examined. For the Reproducibility Study 150 sets of radiographs were examined a total of 4 times, (repeated examinations for each method). For the Progression Study three serial bitewing radiographs of 50 children were examined using the two methods. For the Reproducibility Study, Kendall's Tau-B was used as an approxlination of the weighted Kappa as a measure of reproducibility. While the pitts method appeared to be more reliable, the difference .between the tYK>methods was not significant( p~ 05). The surface cannot be used as an independent unit in measuring reproducibility. A method using the subject as the sampling unit was illustrated. Attention was drawn to the need to develop a measure of reproducibility for progression studies which would take into account the magnitude of the disagreement (instead of just disagreement) into the overall index of reproducibility. The use of weighted Kappa is suggested as a more appropriate measure of reproducibility. In the Progression Study Method 1 is more sensitive to the various stages of the disease process and provides a more complete overall picture of the carious process. The proportion of enamel lesions recorded for Method 1 were consistantly higher than that for Method 2. The behaviour of outer and inner enamel lesions differed considerably and Method 1 allowed the behaviour of these lesions to be considered separately. The progression rates were found to be faster with Method 2. With Method 1 30% of enamel lesions per subject had progressed to dentine or been filled 12 months later, the corresponding figure for Method 2 was 50%. Method 2 by excluding outer enamel lesions introduces two biases. The combination of these biases favour overestimating the proportion of lesions deemed to have progressed. The use of Method 2 may lead to the unnecessary loss of valuable data; more surfaces were excluded as being unreadable because of overlap. The average proportion of surfaces per subject recorded as unreadible due to overlap was 7% at baseline, 8% at 12 months and 8% at 24 months, the corresponding figures for Method 2 were 13%, 13% and 22% for Method 2. Method 1 thus appears to offer some advantages. The use of the subject as the sampling unit in analysing caries progression data offers a mnnber of advantages when canpared to the use of the surface as the sampling unit. The findings of the study indicate the proportions of high risk subjects (subjects in whom a large proportion of lesions progressed in a given time period) was low. With Method 1 in only 11% of the subjects did 80-100% of the enamel lesions progress after 12 months. The findings indicate that the Pitts system is the more useful scoring system in studies monitoring caries progression in deciduous teeth. / British Council

Dental age estimation techniques have great importance in dental evaluation, specifically in the orthodontic, academic, and forensic areas. The aim of this study was to compare the dental age according to the Demirjian, Nolla and Cameriere methods with the chronological age in a Peruvian population. This is an observational, descriptive, retrospective and cross-sectional study, which had a total population of 578 panoramic radiographs of subjects aged 6 to 14 years, where the difference in means from a previous study was calculated, and 193 subjects were finally randomly selected. The chronological ages (CA) and dental ages (DA) were compared using the Wilcoxon and Kruskall Wallis Range Tests. The means were 8.77 ± 2.34 and 8.90 ± 2.04 years of the CA for the female and male genders, respectively. The difference in means of the CA and DA according to the Nolla, Demirjian and Cameriere methods were-0.38, 0.96 and-0.21 years, respectively, for the total study sample. A positive correlation was found for the three methods studied; however, the Demirjian method showed a statistically significant difference with an underestimation of-0.91 years in the total sample. Also, the method of Cameriere was the closest to the chronological age. / Las técnicas de estimación de edad dental tienen gran importancia en la evaluación odontológica, específicamente en el área de ortodoncia, académica y forense. El objetivo de este estudio fue comparar la edad dental según los métodos de Demirjian, Nolla y Cameriere con la edad cronológica en una población peruana. El diseño del estudio es de tipo observacional, descriptivo, de corte transversal y retrospectivo; tuvo una población total de 578 radiografías panorámicas de sujetos de 6 a 14 años, en las cuales se calculó la diferencia de medias de un estudio previo y, finalmente, fueron seleccionadas 193 de forma aleatoria. Se compararon la edad cronológica (EC) y la edad dental (ED) según los métodos de Nolla, Demirjian y Cameriere, utilizando las Pruebas de Rangos de Wilcoxon y Kruskall Wallis. Las medias de la EC fueron de 8,77±2,34 y 8,90±2,04 años para el género femenino y masculino, respectivamente. Las diferencias de medias de la EC y ED, de acuerdo con los métodos Nolla, Demirjian y Cameriere, fue de -0,38, 0,96 y -0,29 años, respectivamente, para la muestra total de estudio. Se encontró una correlación positiva para los tres métodos estudiados; sin embargo, el método de Demirjian mostró una diferencia estadísticamente significativa con una subestimación de -0,91 años en la muestra total. Asimismo, el método de Cameriere fue el que tuvo más cercanía a la edad cronológica. / Revisión por pares