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Radiation Contamination (radiation + contamination)

Distribution by Scientific Domains

Life Sciences	50%

Selected Abstracts

A Randomized, Double-blind, Sham-controlled Trial Comparing Two Screening Devices for Radiation Contamination

ACADEMIC EMERGENCY MEDICINE, Issue 9 2010
Philip Salen MD
Abstract Objectives:, This exploratory study compared the screening ability of a newly introduced radiation detection portal with a traditional Geiger counter for detection of radiation contamination in the setting of a mass casualty training exercise. Methods:, Following a pretrial evaluation of interobserver reliability for Geiger counter use, 30 volunteers were randomly assigned to don gowns containing three disks, each of which was either a sham resembling the radioactive samples or an actual cesium-137 sample; each subject participated a minimum of four times with different gowns each time. Each subject underwent standard radioactivity screening with the Geiger counter and the portal. Results:, Interobserver reliability was excellent between the two Geiger counter screeners in the pretrial exercise, correctly identifying 101 of 102 sham and radioactive samples (, = 0.98; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.94 to 1.00). For radioactively labeled subjects across all bodily locations, the portal (43/61, or 70.5%; 95% CI = 58.1% to 80.5%) was less sensitive than the Geiger counter screening (61/61, or 100%; 95% CI = 92.9% to 100%), which resulted in a portal false-negative rate of 29.5%. For radiation detection in the posterior thorax, the portal radiation screening (4/19, or 21.1%; 95% CI = 8% to 43.9%) was less accurate than the Geiger counter (19/19, or 100%; 95% CI 80.2% to 100%). In contrast, there were no major differences between the portal and the Geiger counter for radiation detection at the left shoulder, right shoulder, or sham (nonradiation) detection. There were no false-positive detections of the sham-labeled subjects for either device, yielding a specificity of 100% for both screening modalities. Conclusions:, Geiger counter screening was more sensitive than, and equally specific to, radiation detection portal screening in detecting radioactively labeled subjects during a radiation mass casualty drill. ACADEMIC EMERGENCY MEDICINE 2010; 17:1020,1023 © 2010 by the Society for Academic Emergency Medicine [source]

Subchronic exposure of BALB/c and C57BL/6 strains of Mus musculus to the radioactive environment of the Chornobyl, Ukraine exclusion zone

ENVIRONMENTAL TOXICOLOGY & CHEMISTRY, Issue 12 2001
Brenda E. Rodgers
Abstract Environmental contamination resulting from the Chornobyl, Ukraine, disaster offers a unique opportunity to examine the in vivo biological effects of chronic, low-dose exposure to radiation. Laboratory studies of acute exposure to ionizing radiation have been used to estimate risk and potential human health effects by the extrapolation of laboratory data to situations of low-dose environmental radiation exposure. Few studies, however, have explored the biological consequences of low-dose exposure via in situ environmental radiation in a sentinel species. In the present study, laboratory strains of Mus musculus (BALB/c and 57BL/ 6) were placed in environmental enclosures in the Red Forest region of the Chornobyl exclusion zone. Blood samples were obtained every 10 d, and the micronucleus (MN) test was employed to assess the potential for cytogenetic damage from exposure to Chornobyl radiation. Radionuclide uptake was monitored throughout the study, and dose was estimated for each individual as well as for their offspring. Total dose for the mice experimentally exposed to this environment averaged 1162 mGy for BALB/c (30 d) and 1629 mGy for C57BL/6 (40 d). A higher MN frequency for both strains was observed at day 10, although this change was only statistically significant in the C57BL/6 mice (,23 = 13.41, p = 0.003). Subsequent samples from C57BL/6 resulted in values at or less than the initial frequencies. In BALB/c mice, an increase in MN was also evident at day 30 (,22 = 10.38, p = 0.006). The experimental design employed here allows for the incorporation of traditional laboratory strains, as well as transgenic strains of Mus, as sentinels of environmental radiation contamination. [source]

A Randomized, Double-blind, Sham-controlled Trial Comparing Two Screening Devices for Radiation Contamination

Chronic radiation exposure in the Rivne-Polissia region of Ukraine: Implications for birth defects

AMERICAN JOURNAL OF HUMAN BIOLOGY, Issue 5 2010
Kelsey Needham Dancause
Objectives: The health effects of chronic low-dose radiation exposure remains a controversial question. Monitoring after the Chernobyl nuclear accident in Ukraine suggested that chronic low-dose radiation exposure was not linked to cancer mortality among the general population. However, elevated rates of birth defects in contaminated compared to uncontaminated regions suggest that exposure to radiation in utero might impact development and that chronic radiation exposure might represent an underestimated risk to human health. Methods: We sought to determine current radiation exposure routes in Rivne-Polissia, a region of Ukraine contaminated by the Chernobyl accident. This represents a first step toward comprehensive studies of the effects of chronic radiation exposure on human health. We designed and administered a dietary and activity survey to 344 women in Polissia. We assessed types and sources of food consumed, types of outdoor activities, and alcohol intake. Results: Alcohol intake was low and alone does not account for the observed high rates of birth defects. Wild foods, especially mushrooms and berries, and locally produced foods, especially milk related, were major radiation exposure routes. Additionally, women were exposed to radiation through inhalation while burning grasses and potato vines in fields, and wood for cooking and heating. Conclusions: Twenty four years after the Chernobyl accident, women continue to be chronically exposed to low-dose radiation at levels exceeding current recommendations. This might contribute (especially synergistically with alcohol consumption and micronutrient deficiencies) to higher prevalence of birth defects in areas of Ukraine with high levels of radiation contamination compared to uncontaminated areas. Am. J. Hum. Biol. 22:667,674, 2010. © 2010 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source]