Dosimetric Evaluation of the Sensitivity of PAGAT Gel Dosimeters Infused with Clinically Used Gadolinium-Based Contrast Agents

This study evaluates the impact of gadolinium-based contrast agents (Omniscan, Dotarem, and Gadovist) on the performance of PAGAT gel dosimeters using spectrophotometric analysis. Dosimeters were infused with gadolinium at concentrations ranging from 0 to 40 mg/mL and irradiated with a 6 MV photon b...

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Main Authors: Melani Fuentealba, Carolina Vallejos, Sergio Díez, Mauricio Santibáñez
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2025-05-01
Series:Gels
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2310-2861/11/6/416
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author Melani Fuentealba
Carolina Vallejos
Sergio Díez
Mauricio Santibáñez
author_facet Melani Fuentealba
Carolina Vallejos
Sergio Díez
Mauricio Santibáñez
author_sort Melani Fuentealba
collection DOAJ
description This study evaluates the impact of gadolinium-based contrast agents (Omniscan, Dotarem, and Gadovist) on the performance of PAGAT gel dosimeters using spectrophotometric analysis. Dosimeters were infused with gadolinium at concentrations ranging from 0 to 40 mg/mL and irradiated with a 6 MV photon beam over a dose range of 0–15 Gy. Regarding dosimeter behavior, Dotarem exhibited an enhancement in optical density prior to irradiation due to polymerization reactions between the dosimeter and the contrast agent starting at 10 mg/mL, which compromised optical readings above 20 mg/mL. Omniscan consistently showed 37.7% lower sensitivity than standard PAGAT across all concentrations and dose levels. Conversely, Gadovist enhanced sensitivity by up to 50% at 20 mg/mL, with additional gains at higher concentrations, although accompanied by saturation at lower dose levels. Radiological analysis showed that all tested concentrations maintained mass energy–absorption coefficient differences below 1% and water-equivalence in effective atomic number within 5% at 6 MV. These findings underscore the importance of selecting an appropriate contrast agent to enhance gel dosimeter sensitivity, particularly in low-dose regions where measurement uncertainty increases. Additionally, gadolinium-infused PAGAT gels show strong potential for assessing dose enhancement phenomena. Their sensitivity, threshold behavior, and radiological properties suggest they may be suitable for applications in dose enhancement dosimetry as well as conventional clinical settings.
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spelling doaj-art-4c7585fa22ff43ebbc36c003fbf876b12025-08-20T03:24:38ZengMDPI AGGels2310-28612025-05-0111641610.3390/gels11060416Dosimetric Evaluation of the Sensitivity of PAGAT Gel Dosimeters Infused with Clinically Used Gadolinium-Based Contrast AgentsMelani Fuentealba0Carolina Vallejos1Sergio Díez2Mauricio Santibáñez3Departamento de Cs. Físicas, Universidad de La Frontera, Temuco 4811230, ChileDepartamento de Cs. Físicas, Universidad de La Frontera, Temuco 4811230, ChileDepartamento de Fisiología, Universidad de Valencia, 46010 Valencia, SpainDepartamento de Cs. Físicas, Universidad de La Frontera, Temuco 4811230, ChileThis study evaluates the impact of gadolinium-based contrast agents (Omniscan, Dotarem, and Gadovist) on the performance of PAGAT gel dosimeters using spectrophotometric analysis. Dosimeters were infused with gadolinium at concentrations ranging from 0 to 40 mg/mL and irradiated with a 6 MV photon beam over a dose range of 0–15 Gy. Regarding dosimeter behavior, Dotarem exhibited an enhancement in optical density prior to irradiation due to polymerization reactions between the dosimeter and the contrast agent starting at 10 mg/mL, which compromised optical readings above 20 mg/mL. Omniscan consistently showed 37.7% lower sensitivity than standard PAGAT across all concentrations and dose levels. Conversely, Gadovist enhanced sensitivity by up to 50% at 20 mg/mL, with additional gains at higher concentrations, although accompanied by saturation at lower dose levels. Radiological analysis showed that all tested concentrations maintained mass energy–absorption coefficient differences below 1% and water-equivalence in effective atomic number within 5% at 6 MV. These findings underscore the importance of selecting an appropriate contrast agent to enhance gel dosimeter sensitivity, particularly in low-dose regions where measurement uncertainty increases. Additionally, gadolinium-infused PAGAT gels show strong potential for assessing dose enhancement phenomena. Their sensitivity, threshold behavior, and radiological properties suggest they may be suitable for applications in dose enhancement dosimetry as well as conventional clinical settings.https://www.mdpi.com/2310-2861/11/6/416gel dosimetryPAGATGd contrast agent
spellingShingle Melani Fuentealba
Carolina Vallejos
Sergio Díez
Mauricio Santibáñez
Dosimetric Evaluation of the Sensitivity of PAGAT Gel Dosimeters Infused with Clinically Used Gadolinium-Based Contrast Agents
Gels
gel dosimetry
PAGAT
Gd contrast agent
title Dosimetric Evaluation of the Sensitivity of PAGAT Gel Dosimeters Infused with Clinically Used Gadolinium-Based Contrast Agents
title_full Dosimetric Evaluation of the Sensitivity of PAGAT Gel Dosimeters Infused with Clinically Used Gadolinium-Based Contrast Agents
title_fullStr Dosimetric Evaluation of the Sensitivity of PAGAT Gel Dosimeters Infused with Clinically Used Gadolinium-Based Contrast Agents
title_full_unstemmed Dosimetric Evaluation of the Sensitivity of PAGAT Gel Dosimeters Infused with Clinically Used Gadolinium-Based Contrast Agents
title_short Dosimetric Evaluation of the Sensitivity of PAGAT Gel Dosimeters Infused with Clinically Used Gadolinium-Based Contrast Agents
title_sort dosimetric evaluation of the sensitivity of pagat gel dosimeters infused with clinically used gadolinium based contrast agents
topic gel dosimetry
PAGAT
Gd contrast agent
url https://www.mdpi.com/2310-2861/11/6/416
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AT sergiodiez dosimetricevaluationofthesensitivityofpagatgeldosimetersinfusedwithclinicallyusedgadoliniumbasedcontrastagents
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