PubMed Health⌕ Search

SEARCH · PubMed Health

Results for “RADIATION PROTECTION”

Explore indexed PubMed citations for clinical trials, systematic reviews and public health research. Read source abstracts and follow each citation to its original PubMed record.

Quote a phrase for an exact phrase match. Source license links do not imply unrestricted reuse.

At least 379 records · Page 21Linked to original sources

An evaluation of the ethical principles of the ICRP's radiation protection standards for workers.

After reviewing international recommendations and national standards for occupational radiation exposures, the article summarizes the major ethical theories so as to analyze which theories various ICRP principles presuppose. It also shows how proponents of each ethical theory would support or criticize various radiation principles and practices. Finally the article discusses four ethical issues crucial to the debate over workplace standards for radiation: (1) how to respond to the uncertainty over effects of low-dose exposures; (2) the conditions under which worker consent legitimates higher exposures; (3) whether there ought to be a double standard for worker, vs. public, exposures; and (4) whether ethics allows money-for-health tradeoffs in radiation protection. The article concludes with several recommendations about how to make occupational exposure to radiation more ethically defensible.

Dose-Response Relationship, Radiation↗

Improved radiation protection for physicians performing cardiac catheterization.

Physicians and their assistants performing diagnostic angiography must be concerned with the radiation exposure they receive. The introduction of hemiaxial projections for imaging has increased diagnostic accuracy but has also greatly increased the physicians' exposure to scattered radiation. This increase is especially critical for the eyes and thyroid of the physician who routinely performs these procedures. To reduce such exposure a ceiling-suspended shield (60 x 45 cm), made of 6.4 mm glass with a 19.5 kg/m2 (4 lb/ft2) lead equivalency, was developed. During procedures the shield is interposed between the physician and the region of the patient acting as the source of scattered radiation. The degree of radiation protection to the operator was assessed by measuring the distribution of scattered radiation in the vicinity of the operator with and without the shield. The effectiveness of the shield was determined in the 30 degrees right anterior oblique (RAO), 5 degrees left anterior oblique (LAO), 35 degrees LAO, and 50 degrees LAO-15 degrees cranial angulations. At critical heights such as the level of the eyes and thyroid, scattered radiation levels were reduced by 85% or greater in all angulations. Without interfering with the physician's ability to observe the patient or manipulate the catheter, this shield can significantly reduce the physician's exposure to radiation.

Angiocardiography↗

Lack of radiation protective effect of orgotein in normal and malignant mammalian cells.

The potential radiation protective effect of orgotein, a metalloprotein with superoxide dismutase activity, was investigated in L1A2 tumour cells in vitro, jejunal crypt cells and C3H mouse mammary carcinoma in vivo. No effect of orgotein, given either 2 hours before irradiation or 30 min after, was observed compared to the effect of irradiation alone. Thus, it was concluded that orgotein did not influence the primary radiation response in air in mammalian cells.

Animals↗

On being understood: clarity and jargon in radiation protection.

While much of the language used to express the concepts of radiation protection works effectively, there are many ill-chosen names and phrases and much jargon that permeate our professional speech and writing. From the oxymoron "internal exposure" to the "snarl word" "decay," there is much room for improvement. This essay identifies many of the problems and suggests solutions. We examine the kinds of confusions that can result from using familiar words with unfamiliar meanings and the need for neology. We offer insights into specific and unambiguous naming of physical quantities and explore the seemingly unlimited kinds of "dose." We disaggregate exposure from irradiation following intakes, and unmask units like "gram rad per microcurie hour." We call for a definition of radiation weighting factor that doesn't result in a violation of the law of conservation of energy. We examine the subtleties of distinguishing between radiation and radioactive materials. Some words, such as "exposure," have multiple meanings, while at other times there are different words or phrases with the same meaning, such as "critical level" and "decision level" or "detection level" and "minimum detectable amount." Sometimes phrases are used whose meaning is unclear or not agreed upon, such as "lower limit of detection." Sometimes there are words that are simply not apt, such as "disintegration" applied to the emission of a subatomic particle from a nucleus.

Humans↗

Radiation protection and quality assurance in diagnostic radiology--an IAEA coordinated research project in Asia and eastern Europe.

The International Atomic Energy Agency currently has two parallel Coordinated Research Projects (CRP) running in Asia and Eastern Europe. The main objective of the CRPs is to raise the level of awareness in participating countries about the need for radiation protection for patients undergoing diagnostic radiology procedures. This is to be achieved by first assessing the status quo in a sample of hospitals and X-ray rooms in each participating country. A program of optimization of radiation protection for patients is then introduced by means of a comprehensive quality assurance program and the implementation of appropriate dose reduction methods, taking into account clinical requirements for diagnostically acceptable images. Patient dose assessment and image quality assessment are to be performed both before and after the introduction of the quality assurance program. The CRP is divided into two phases--the first is concerned with conventional radiography, while the second involves fluoroscopy and computed tomography. The CRP is still running, restricting the scope of this paper to a discussion of the approach being taken with the project. The project will be completed in 1998, with analysis to follow.

Asia↗

Radiation protection standards: their evolution from science to philosophy.

The concept of applying constraints on individual sources to a small fraction of the public dose limit has been deemed inappropriate when shielding the medical X-ray sources. This represents a broad-based consensus of medical physics and radiological societies in the United States, and the report series on the shielding design for medical X-ray sources (including dental, X-ray imaging and therapeutic X ray) from the National Council on Radiation Protection and Measurements (NCRP) utilises 1 mSv y(-1) as a source control limit. In the present study, the rationale for such a conclusion is discussed, and a somewhat critical look at the current model of radiation protection of the public is made.

Environmental Exposure↗