This document is the first of the series on quality control and has concentrated on the need for harmonization of quality controls in (QCs) digital mammography. In it protocols are described with the intention of fulfilling the following criteria:

• Tests included in the protocol have been selected on the basis of their relevance/priority (“Keep it simple”).
• The protocol should be applicable to any type of digital mammography system (DR and CR).
• The protocol should be “compatible” or at least “not in contradiction” with other existing protocols.
• The protocol should not require the use of a specific test object, and consequently, should be “tolerant” about image quality parameters and criteria.
• The protocol should be widely applicable and adaptable to local regulations.
• The protocol should provide clear instructions about each test procedure, in order to minimize the potential for misinterpretation.

Your feedback is greatly appreciated. Once you have used the protocol, please send comments or suggestions to: Alberto Torresin at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

You are kindly asked to complete the on line survey on the EFOMP Mammo Working Group protocol at: https://goo.gl/XuZEBJ.

Quality control of cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT) systems is an essential part of quality assurance to periodically check that quality requirements are met, reduce uncertainties and errors and reduce the likelihood of accidents and incidents. Radiation exposure levels must be measured to ensure that patient doses associated with CBCT examinations are kept as low as reasonably achievable consistent with the required diagnostic information. The main purpose of this document is to present procedures for quality control of CBCT systems used for dental, radiotherapy, interventional radiology and guided surgery applications.

The ‘Quality control in cone-beam computed tomography’ is the second of the series on quality control protocols. The European Federation of Organizations for Medical Physics (EFOMP) published the first document on ‘Quality Controls in digital mammography’ in 2015. These books are freely available online at efomp.org and can be used as both, in-depth working guides to everyday practice and an up-to-date reference sources for medical physicists engaged in quality control of medical imaging systems.

This book is the result of the experience and knowledge of an international group of leading medical physics experts and an excellent illustration of the synergy that can be achieved when every team member works at their best and collaboratively follows the whole process through its completion. Representing the European Medical Physics professional-scientific community (EFOMP), I would like to thank each co-author for sharing their invaluable expertise and insights and especially the Group Leader Dr. Hugo de las Heras Gala and the Chair of the EFOMP Education and Training Committee Dr. Alberto Torresin.
Prof. John Damilakis, EFOMP President

An executive summary of the full EFOMP CBCT protocol has been published in the journal Physica Medica - European Journal of Medical Physics, and is available for free download at the following link: http://www.physicamedica.com/article/S1120-1797(17)30183-7/fulltext

The complexity of PET imaging requires a clear quality control procedure at different levels, from radiopharmaceutical activity assay up to the final image formation and quantitation. The EFOMP Protocol for Quality Control in PET/CT and PET/MRI provides simple and practical procedures that may be integrated into clinical practice to identify changes in the PET/CT/MRI scanner's performance and avoid short- and long-term quality deterioration. The Protocol describes the quality control procedures on radionuclide calibrators, weighing scales, PET, CT and MRI scanners using selected and measurable parameters that are directly linked to clinical images quality. It helps to detect problems before they can impact clinical studies in terms of safety, image quality, quantification accuracy and patient radiation dose. CT and MRI QC are described only in the context of their use for PET (attenuation correction and anatomical localization) imaging. A regular QC based on the proposed protocol would guarantee that PET/CT and PET/MRI scanners operate under optimal conditions, resulting in the best performance in routine clinical tasks. EFOMP intends to update the protocols after few years in practice, taking into account the knowledge and experience gained via their implementation in different clinical settings. Users are encouraged to share their experiences at conferences and in publications. Please submit comments and recommendations to the EFOMP PET/CT/MRI QC Working Group chair Roberta Matheoud (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.) once you’ve used the protocols.