Assessment of Internal Exposure Doses in Fukushima by a Whole Body Counter Within One Month after the Nuclear Power Plant Accident

This study analyzes data from telephone consultations made with a research institution during approximately one year following the March 11, 2011, Fukushima, Japan, Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant accident. Data was correlated with newspaper and online media coverage. During the analysis, many calls for consultation concerned aspects of daily life such as food, clothing, and housing and to radiation exposure during the accident. As the year of study went on, the proportion of consultation on daily life changed to more technical topics, such as dose measurement, scientific knowledge, natural radiation, and Russia’s Chernobyl accident. The topic of “children” raised the greatest number of consultations over the entire period; 20–40% of callers inquiring about soil, dose measurement and internal exposure asked also about children. Media reports on the topics consulted on were few except for those on dose measurement. The proportion of consultations on children and dose measurement may have been raised due to media reports circulating at about the same time. We concluded that it is important in postaccident risk communication that information related to daily living – especially protective measures that could be taken – and to effects on children be provided efficiently and at an appropriate timing.

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Whole body counter assessment of internal radiocontamination in patients with end-stage renal disease living in areas affected by the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant disaster: a retrospective observational study

BMJ Open ◽

10.1136/bmjopen-2015-009745 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 5 (12) ◽

pp. e009745 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Hiroaki Shimmura ◽

Masaharu Tsubokura ◽

Shigeaki Kato ◽

Junichi Akiyama ◽

Shuhei Nomura ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Power Plant ◽

Nuclear Power Plant ◽

Observational Study ◽

End Stage Renal Disease ◽

Nuclear Power ◽

Whole Body ◽

Whole Body Counter ◽

Fukushima Daiichi ◽

Stage Renal Disease ◽

End Stage

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Measurement and communication: what worked and what did not in Fukushima

Annals of the ICRP ◽

10.1177/0146645316666493 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 45 (2_suppl) ◽

pp. 14-22

Author(s):

R. Hayano

Keyword(s):

Power Plant ◽

Nuclear Power Plant ◽

Nuclear Power ◽

Internal Exposure ◽

Whole Body ◽

External Exposure ◽

External Dose ◽

Exposure Levels ◽

Fukushima Daiichi ◽

Body Count

The accident at Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant contaminated the soil of densely populated regions in Fukushima Prefecture with radiocaesium, which poses risks of internal and external exposure to the residents. However, extensive whole-body-count surveys have shown that internal exposure levels of residents are negligible. In addition, data from personal dosimeters have shown that external exposure levels have decreased, so the estimated annual external dose of the majority of people is <1 mSv in most areas of Fukushima. Despite these reassuring data, many problems remain in Fukushima, many of which are psychosocial rather than radiological. This article will discuss the roles of measurement and communication in the postaccident phase based on 5 years of experience.

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Screening for the 137Cs body burden owing to the Chernobyl accident in Zhytomyr region, Ukraine: 2009–2018

PLoS ONE ◽

10.1371/journal.pone.0245491 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 16 (1) ◽

pp. e0245491

Author(s):

Yesbol Sartayev ◽

Jumpei Takahashi ◽

Alexander Gutevich ◽

Naomi Hayashida

Keyword(s):

Power Plant ◽

Nuclear Power Plant ◽

Nuclear Power ◽

Body Burden ◽

Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant ◽

The Body ◽

Internal Exposure ◽

Whole Body ◽

Seasonal Effect ◽

Low Grade

The Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant accident released vast amounts of various fission products, of which 131I and 137Cs are considered the most important because they are a major source of radiation exposure to the general public. 137Cs, unlike 131I, has a 30-year half-life that continues to expose people internally and externally for several decades after being deposited into the ground. 137Cs can be easily transmitted to the body through the intake of products and wild forest foodstuffs produced in contaminated areas. In the early phase, external exposure to 137Cs was predominant; however, it gradually diminished, mostly owing to horizontal and vertical distribution, and internal exposure started gaining dominance. Prior studies have shown that people in the affected areas have been constantly subjected to the inevitable low-grade internal exposure, which in turn has led to high anxiety and concern regarding the potential health effects. The present 10-year study assessed the latest status of the body burden among residents of the contaminated parts of the Zhytomyr region of Ukraine by measuring the internal concentration of 137Cs using the whole-body counter installed at the Medical Center of Korosten city. Almost 110 000 examinees from eight different districts were screened between 2009 and 2018. The study area was situated to the west of Chernobyl, which experienced a significant fallout of 137Cs and 131I from the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant. We analyzed the data for internal exposure to 137Cs by obtaining the actual magnitude, pace, and pattern of change for each year. During the study, the average 137Cs concentration in residents fell from 21.6 Bq/kg at the beginning of the study to 3.0 Bq/kg at the end of the study. The proportion of examinees with detectable levels had also fallen rapidly, from 45% to 11%. We found a weaker seasonal effect and a significantly higher Bq/kg concentration in adolescents than in other age groups.

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