RAB1400 Computed Tomography (CT) Course description

Language of instruction: Norwegian

Computed tomography (CT) provides great opportunities for accurate and detailed diagnosis, and the number of CT examinations has increased in recent years. It is important for radiographers to have a high level of expertise on CT. The course covers knowledge of radiation protection, dose reduction techniques, patient care, sectional anatomy and image analysis.

The student must have been admitted to the study programme.

After completing the course, the student should have the following learning outcomes defined in terms of knowledge, skills and general competence:   

Knowledge  

The student can

• explain the construction, function and use of CT equipment
• explain the effect of scan parameters, reconstruction parameters and dose modulation on image quality and radiation dose in CT examinations  
• explain how CT images are generated
• explain the processing of CT images, including 2D processing and 3D visualisation 
• describe diseases that are common indications for CT examination 
• explain how patients and laboratories are prepared for contrast CT examinations
• describe the main content of national and international legislation, regulations and guides that regards with radiation protection in CT
• describe principles and methods for quality control and calibration of CT 
• explain how radiation from natural sources and medical procedures contribute to the radiation dose of patients and the population in particular 
• describe the effect of ionising radiation on cells and DNA 
• describe the risks associated with ionising and non-ionising radiation
• describe simple quality control procedures for CT 

Skills  

The student can  

• recognise normal anatomy and obvious pathology in CT images  
• calculate effective dose based on the dose length product (DLP)  
• compare radiation doses from CT examinations with national diagnostic reference levels
• apply various image processing methods 

General competence   

The student can

• discuss the possibilities and limitations of CT in a national and international perspective

Work and teaching methods include lectures, seminars, skills training, report-writing and self-study. In seminars, the students work in groups. This course uses digital learning resources in the form of video lectures, digital tests and exercises.

The following must have been approved before the student can take the exam:  

• a minimum attendance of 90 % at scheduled seminars and skills training sessions 
• skills report in groups of up to six students. Scope: 600 words
• individual multiple choice test in accordance with set criteria

Supervised individual written exam, combination of multiple choice and free text assignments, 3 hours 

No aids permitted 

Grade scale A-F 

An external examiner contributes to the preparation of the exam questions.

Free text assignment: At least 20% of the exam papers will be assessed by one external and one internal examiner. The external examiner’s assessment should benefit all students. The remaining papers will be assessed by internal examiners.

Multiple choice test: quality assured by an internal examiner and automatically assessed

4 ECTS overlap with RAD2000