Health safety and Environment Committee

Subject: Procedure for the scanning of child volunteers using Dual X-ray Absorptiometry (DXA)

Introduction

The RPO received notification from the Department of Human Science that they intended to add to their working procedures a protocol for the scanning of child volunteers using Dual X-ray Absorptiometry(please see document PR04) This protocol was presented to the Radiation Protection Committee for consideration and after discussion a procedure was agreed to satisfy the justification and ethical issues in what could be a contentious area of research. I have been directed by the Committee to inform the Ethical Advisory Committee of this protocol and the procedure agreed.

When the DXA arrived on campus the University Local Rules for the Protection of Persons Exposed to Ionising Radiation were amended to accommodate the new equipment.

The amendment to the local rules is as follows:

“All radiation exposures to volunteers involving the use of dual x-ray absorptiometry (DXA) must have been approved by the University Ethical Advisory Committee before any exposure is made. Participants most vulnerable to radiation I.e. pregnant women and children should be excluded from these studies unless there are good scientific reasons for their inclusion.”

This amendment has been accepted by Council.

Procedure proposed for any x-ray exposures involving child volunteers

The Justification for the exposures must first be agreed by a Medical Practitioner.
Approval must be gained from a Medical Physics Expert, (the RPA, employed by the University who is an expert under the IRMER Regulations) ..
The application will then be submit to the NHS Ethical Committee (ENREC) (a legal requirement.)
Once this approval is gained the URPO will comment on the research proposal before it is submitted to the University Ethical Advisory Committee who will give a final decision.

Author – Linda Sands

Date – February 2008