Jessica Ruth Dillon: A Comparison of Contemporary Portable X-ray Systems (Under the direction of Brandon Johnson) Using optically stimulated luminescent (OSL) dosimetry, full mouth series (FMX) effective dose (E) and operator dose were calculated for adult and child anthropomorphic phantoms using a wall-mounted source with circular collimation (Cir) and rectangular collimation (RC), the NOMAD Pro 2 TM handheld with Cir and RC, and the Xray2go handheld with Cir. To assess the impact of RC on exposure, an exploratory device positioning technique was evaluated. Technique errors and line pair resolution (LP) were also assessed. Dosimetry differences were analyzed using Analysis of Variance. Adult handheld E with Cir was significantly lower than conventional Cir for both handheld devices (p<.0001). Child handheld E with Cir was similar to conventional Cir for the NOMAD TM (p=.0984). RC E was significantly lower than all Cir (p<.0001). Operator groin dose was significantly higher than thyroid, chest and trigger hand for all handheld modalities (p<.0001). Prevalence of technique errors was not different between devices (p=.07). Mean LP resolution was similar for all modalities. iv PREFACE LCDR Jessica R. Dillon, Dental Corps, Navy Medicine Education, Training and Logistics Command, is a resident at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Adams School of Dentistry, training in Oral and Maxillofacial Radiology.