The evaluation of morphometric characteristics of the pituitary gland and its adjacent tissues to elaborate a dosimetric model

The pituitary gland exposure can lead to increase the risk of hormone-dependent cancers, such as breast cancer. The pituitary gland is located in the pituitary fossa of the sphenoid bone and can be exposed due to bone-seeking radionuclides such as 90Sr. The Commission on Radiological Protection does not distinguish the pituitary gland as a separate organ for absorbed dose calculating from incorporated radionuclides. In this regard, an urgent task is to create a dosimetric model that simulates the geometry of the source-tissues – the bones of the skull, and the target-tissue – the pituitary gland and adjacent tissues. This model will allow us to calculate the dose factors converting the activity concentration of radionuclide in the bone to the absorbed dose rate in the pituitary gland. To develop such a model, it is necessary to provide a systematic review of data on the size of the pituitary gland and surrounding tissues. Objective: to evaluate the morphometric characteristics necessary for constructing a computational dosimetric phantom of the pituitary gland and its adjacent tissues for people of the following age groups: newborn, 1-year-old, 5-year-old, 10-year-old, 15-year-old, adults. Materials and methods: The dosimetric model is supposed to include anatomical structures located within 1.5 cm around the pituitary gland. Therefore, the characteristics of the following tissues were evaluated based on published data: part of the brain, content of the sphenoid sinus, vessels around pituitary gland, pituitary gland, the sphenoid bone. Results and Discussion: The characteristics of the simulated objects were evaluated for all age groups, for the sella turcica they ranged from 3.4-13.3 mm, and for the pituitary gland – 3.8-13.6 mm. These values are based on studies of ~5,000 people. The size of the vascular sinuses is estimated at 1-1.7 mm, the thickness of the membranes of the pituitary gland is 0.57 mm. The thickness of the cortical bone was 0.75 mm, and the bone volume to total bone volume ratio was 39 %. Conclusion: The results of this work will be used for creating of three-dimensional computational dosimetric phantoms of the pituitary gland and its surrounding tissues for different age groups.

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