NIR Protection in Medicine

The workshop on “NIR in Medicine” covered medical as well as cosmetic applications from all frequency ranges of the non-ionizing electromagnetic spectrum as well as ultrasound. The benefit from NIR use in medicine, such as MRI for diagnostic and interventional imaging, was well recognized, especially in view of the alternative use of ionizing radiation. However, while a key aspect of ionizing radiation protection is optimization through dose reduction, the development of NIR technologies still focuses on image quality improvements without consideration of the ever increasing exposure levels for both health care workers and patients. Also the increasing use of NIR applications such as ultrasound and intense pulsed light (IPL) for cosmetic and wellness business by lay persons call for a closer look at health and safety aspects.

A workshop report was drafted by the rapporteur Zenon Sienkiewicz and published (Medical Physics 40, 117001; 2013. doi: 10.1118/1.4824921).

Sunday 2 December

Workshop Chair: Rüdiger Matthes, ICNIRP - Rapporteur: Zenon Sienkiewicz, ICNIRP
Panel Chair: Emilie Van Deventer, WHO

12.00 - 13.00 Registration

13.00 Opening of the workshop
Rüdiger Matthes, ICNIRP Chairman and Federal Office for Radiation Protection, BfS
Christian Greipl, Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety, BMU, Germany

13.10
Access to safe use of medical devices: a WHO perspective
Adriana Velazquez Berumen, Essential Medicines & Health Products, World Health Organization

13.35
The application of non ionizing radiation in medicine: an advantage for the patient
Lluis Mir, CNRS-IGR, Paris XI University, France

14.00
Occupational and patient safety aspects associated with increasing static magnetic field strengths and low frequency fields using MRI as an example
Paul M Glover, The Sir Peter Mansfield Magnetic Resonance Centre, University of Nottingham, United Kingdom

14.25
RF safety problems in medicine
James C Lin, ICNIRP, University of Illinois, United States of America

14.50
Coffee & Teas

15.10
Safety aspects of high power ultrasound for medical, cosmetic/lifestyle and souvenir purposes
Marvin Ziskin, Center for Biomedical Physics, Temple University School of Medicine, United States Of America

15.35
Safety problems of optical radiation in medicine and cosmetics
Bruce Stuck, ICNIRP

16.00
Panel discussion: NIR a future challenge for radiation protection in medicine?
Chaired by Emilie Van Deventer, Radiation and Environmental Health, WHO
Panel
Leonardo Longo, International Academy for Laser Medicine and Surgery
Jimmy Estenberg, Swedish Radiation Protection Authority
John Parrish-Sprawl, Indiana University, USA
BMU representative
and speakers

17.00
Workshop closes