What factor can lead to a decrease in patient dose during X-ray procedures?

Using a higher kilovolt peak (kVp) is indeed a factor that can lead to a decrease in patient dose during X-ray procedures. When the kVp is increased, the energy of the X-rays produced is higher, which allows for greater penetration through the patient's tissues. This means that for the same image quality, a higher kVp can produce a diagnostic image with a lower quantity of radiation exposure to the patient.

Higher kVp results in a decrease in the amount of photons needed to achieve the desired image contrast, which thereby reduces the patient's radiation dose. This is particularly useful in addressing thicker body parts where higher penetration is required, as it reduces the need to increase other exposure parameters like milliampere-seconds (mAs), which would otherwise lead to higher doses.

In contrast, lowering mAs would not always be effective without compensating for contrast and exposure, simply reducing exposure time could also impact image quality, and while increasing distance from the source does reduce dose, it is not the most practical method for decreasing patient dose during routine X-ray procedures compared to adjusting kVp.