Mahdi Hatami Dezdarani - Student Research Committee, Dezful University of Medical Sciences, Dezful, Iran.
Alireza Bagzahedi Baghmalek - Department of Medical Engineering, School of Technical and Engineering, Dezful Branch, Islamic Azad University, Dezful, Iran.
Leila Kalani - Department of Medical Physics, School of Medicine, Dezful University of Medical Sciences, Dezful, Iran.
Mehrdad Gholami - Department of Medical Physics, School of Allied Medical Sciences, Lorestan University of Medical Sciences, Khorramabad, Iran.

Background and Objective: Shielding has been recommended as an effective tool against radiation exposure. Several studies have published on the availability and use of shielding tools in diagnostic X-ray centers across the country and contradictory results been reported. Therefore, the aim of this systematic review was to find out the status of radiation protection in term of availability and use of shielding tools in diagnostic X-ray centers in Iran. Search Method: An extensive literature search was conducted in the PubMed/Medline, Embase, ISI, Cochrane Library, SID, Magiran, IranMedex, Irandoc and Google-Scholar. We also manually searched the reference lists of the relevant studies. Two authors independently assessed the eligibility of all studies and extracted data. Findings: Thirty-seven studies published from 1998 to 2019 were included in this systematic review. In all, 1089 diagnostic X-ray centers, 4439 radiographs and performance of 1472 radiographers were covered in these studies. The availability of lead apron, gonad shield and thyroid collar were ranged from 7 to 95.5%, 26.6 to 94% and 7 to 94%, respectively. Moreover, their usage was ranged from 0 to 85.5%, 0 to 35% and 0 to 38.4%, respectively. In addition, lens shield was discussed in one study with availability of 0%. Conclusion: During 1998 to 2019, the status of shielding had not improved across the country. Therefore adherence to safety guidelines as far as possible is required to protection patients from undue exposure to radiation.

Prevalence, Shielding, Diagnostic X-ray, Radiation Exposure, Iran