scholarly journals Medical and health surveillance in postaccident recovery: experience after Fukushima

2018 ◽  
Vol 47 (3-4) ◽  
pp. 229-240 ◽  
Author(s):  
K. Tanigawa
Keyword(s):  
Radiation Exposure ◽  
Health Effects ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Social Issues ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Health Problems ◽  
Health Surveillance ◽  
Fukushima Accident ◽  
Difficult Situation

The accident at Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant occurred following the huge tsunami and earthquake of 11 March 2011. After the accident, there was considerable uncertainty and concern about the health effects of radiation. In this difficult situation, emergency responses, including large-scale evacuation, were implemented. The Fukushima Health Management Survey (FHMS) was initiated 3 months after the accident. The primary purposes of FHMS were to monitor the long-term health of residents, promote their well-being, and monitor any health effects related to long-term, low-dose radiation exposure. Despite the severity of the Fukushima accident and the huge impact of the natural disaster, radiation exposure of the public was very low. However, there were other serious health problems, including deaths during evacuation, increased mortality among displaced elderly people, mental health and lifestyle-related health problems, and social issues after the accident. The Nuclear Emergency Situations – Improvement of Medical and Health Surveillance (SHAMISEN) project, funded by the Open Project For European Radiation Research Area, aimed to develop recommendations for medical and health surveillance of populations affected by previous and future radiation accidents. This paper briefly introduces the points that have been learned from the Fukushima accident from the perspective of SHAMISEN recommendations.

scholarly journals Assessing the health effects associated with occupational radiation exposure in Korean radiation workers: protocol for a prospective cohort study

BMJ Open ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 8 (3) ◽  
pp. e017359 ◽  
Author(s):  
Songwon Seo ◽  
Wan Young Lim ◽  
Dal Nim Lee ◽  
Jung Un Kim ◽  
Eun Shil Cha ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Cohort Study ◽  
Cancer Risk ◽  
Radiation Exposure ◽  
Health Effects ◽  
Prospective Cohort Study ◽  
Prospective Cohort ◽  
Low Dose ◽  
Occupational Radiation Exposure ◽  
Radiation Workers ◽  
Occupational Radiation

IntroductionThe cancer risk of radiation exposure in the moderate-to-high dose range has been well established. However, the risk remains unclear at low-dose ranges with protracted low-dose rate exposure, which is typical of occupational exposure. Several epidemiological studies of Korean radiation workers have been conducted, but the data were analysed retrospectively in most cases. Moreover, groups with relatively high exposure, such as industrial radiographers, have been neglected. Therefore, we have launched a prospective cohort study of all Korean radiation workers to assess the health effects associated with occupational radiation exposure.Methods and analysisApproximately 42 000 Korean radiation workers registered with the Nuclear Safety and Security Commission from 2016 to 2017 are the initial target population of this study. Cohort participants are to be enrolled through a nationwide self-administered questionnaire survey between 24 May 2016 and 30 June 2017. As of 31 March 2017, 22 982 workers are enrolled in the study corresponding to a response rate of 75%. This enrolment will be continued at 5-year intervals to update information on existing study participants and recruit newly hired workers. Survey data will be linked with the national dose registry, the national cancer registry, the national vital statistics registry and national health insurance data via personal identification numbers. Age-specific and sex-specific standardised incidence and mortality ratios will be calculated for overall comparisons of cancer risk. For dose–response assessment, excess relative risk (per Gy) and excess absolute risk (per Gy) will be estimated with adjustments for birth year and potential confounders, such as lifestyle factors and socioeconomic status.Ethics and disseminationThis study has received ethical approval from the institutional review board of the Korea Institute of Radiological and Medical Sciences (IRB No. K-1603-002-034). All participants provided written informed consent prior to enrolment. The findings of the study will be disseminated through scientific peer-reviewed journals and be provided to the public, including radiation workers, via the study website (http://www.rhs.kr/) and onsite radiation safety education.

scholarly journals Legal Imputation of Radiation Harm to Radiation Exposure Situations

Nuclear Law ◽  
2022 ◽  
pp. 141-159
Author(s):  
Abel Julio González
Keyword(s):  
Radiation Dose ◽  
United Nations ◽  
Radiation Exposure ◽  
Health Effects ◽  
Scientific Committee ◽  
General Assembly ◽  
Legal Doctrine ◽  
Ambiguous Situation ◽  
Un General Assembly ◽  
Low Radiation Doses

AbstractThe doctrine for legal imputation (including the derivative concepts of legal charging, suing, indicting, prosecuting and judging) of detrimental health effects to those responsible for radiation exposure situations has been a matter of debate for many years and its resolution is still unclear. While the attribution of harm in the situations involving high radiation dose is basically straightforward, the challenge arises at medium doses and becomes a real conundrum for the very common situations of exposure to low radiation doses. The ambiguous situation could be construed to be a Damocles sword for the renaissance of endeavours involving occupational and public radiation exposure. This chapter describes the epistemological situation on the attribution of radiation health effects and the inference of radiation risks, relying on estimates from the United Nations Scientific Committee on the Effects of Atomic Radiation (UNSCEAR) reported to the UN General Assembly. It discusses the implications of UNSCEAR’s refined paradigm for assigning legal liability. The chapter concludes with a recommendation to develop an international legal doctrine on the ability to impute detrimental radiation health effects.

Radiation exposure and health effects of the residents around the former Soviet Union nuclear test site in Kazakhstan -A new perspective: radioactive microparticles

Impact ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 2020 (3) ◽  
pp. 70-72 ◽  
Author(s):  
Masaharu Hoshi
Keyword(s):  
Soviet Union ◽  
Radiation Exposure ◽  
Health Effects ◽  
Former Soviet Union ◽  
Test Site ◽  
Professor Emeritus ◽  
Long Term Effects ◽  
The World ◽  
New Perspective

Harnessing atomic particles and radiation led to powerful and world changing technologies. The field of medical imaging has saved countless lives and continues to push the boundaries of medical interventions and research, which would have been impossible without the first x-ray machines. Unfortunately, not all inventions have been so altruistic. The advent of nuclear weapons showed the world the destructive potential possible via scientific inquiry. While the dangerous effects of radiation exposure were documented from the inception of this technology, catastrophic events like the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki and nuclear disasters at Chernobyl Semipalatinsk or Fukushima provide a real-time glimpse into the long-term effects of exposure. Investigating the causes of this exposure in order to prevent future accidents is essential, but so too is cataloguing the rates and types of exposure among the victims. With this information correlations between exposure and health effects, both short- and long-term can be interrogated. This data is crucial for the understanding of the mechanisms behind radiations effects on living creatures and in assessing risks, safety protocols and treatment. Dr Masaharu Hoshi, Professor Emeritus at the Hiroshima University, has spent most of his career travelling around the world, visiting the sites of nuclear disasters in an effort to fully comprehend the risks. He is now using case studies to investigate the radiation exposure and health effects of the residents of radioactive microparticles.

Results of the 65th Session of the United Nations Scientific Committee on the Effects of the Atomic Radiation (UNSCEAR) (Vienna, 11–14 June, 2018)

2018 ◽  
pp. 77-88
Author(s):  
В. Уйба ◽  
V. Uyba ◽  
А. Аклеев ◽  
A. Akleev ◽  
Т. Азизова ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Ionizing Radiation ◽  
Radiation Exposure ◽  
Health Effects ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Low Dose Radiation ◽  
Cancer Data ◽  
Organizational Issues ◽  
Working Groups ◽  
Effects Of Radiation ◽  
Dose Radiation

Current paper is devoted to the main outcomes of the 64th UNSCEAR Session which took place in Vienna during 10 – 14 June 2018. Within the framework of the meetings of the working group and subgroups the documents on the following projects were discussed: - Biological mechanisms influencing health effects from low-dose radiation exposure. - Developments since the 2013 UNSCEAR report on the levels and effects of radiation exposure due to the nuclear accident following the great East-Japan earthquake and tsunami: review of 2016 scientific literature including an evaluation of thyroid cancer data in regions affected by the Chernobyl accident. - Exposure of patients to ionizing radiation. - Exposure of workers to ionizing radiation. - Selected evaluations of health effects and of risk inference due to radiation exposure. - Lung cancer from exposure to radon and to penetrating radiation. In the course of the discussion, some organizational issues such as preparation of UNSCEAR publications, feasibility of establishing standing working groups, public outreach activities, future research program, report to the General Assembly etc., were considered.

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