DETECTION OF ORTHOPEDIC PROSTHESES AT AIRPORT SECURITY CHECKS

We studied the detection of joint replacements at airport security che cks in relation to their weight, using two types of detector arch, A s ingle-source, unilateral detector showed different sensitivities for i mplants on different sides of a test subject. All implants weighing mo re than 145 g were detected by one of the arches, The degree of detect ion was directly related to the logarithm of the weight of the prosthe sis in patients, with a linear correlation (r(2)=0.61). A bilateral ar ch detected all prostheses weighing over 195 g. With their usual sensi tivity settings many joint replacements were detectable; an identifica tion pass containing the site and weight of such prostheses would help to avoid the need for body-search procedures.