Abstract
The main goal of the present study was estimation of an internal contamination of 131I among family members of patients treated with radioactive iodine. Thyroid activity measurements of 131I in examined volunteers were performed using a whole-body spectrometer at the institute of nuclear physics, Polish academy of sciences. During this research, 20 relatives of patients treated with 131I were examined: eight women and 12 men with an age in the range from 3 to 72 years. In the case of nine individuals, the activity of 131I in the thyroid was below the detection limit, but among the remaining 11 individuals, the activity varied from (9 ± 3) Bq up to (1140 ± 295) Bq. Subsequently, based on the measurements of thyroid 131I activities, the corresponding doses were assessed. The highest estimated effective dose reached 218 μSv, while the thyroid equivalent dose was 2.4 mSv. In addition, the experimental data obtained were statistically analysed together with the results of surveys of the individuals participating in the study by means of correspondence analysis and nonparametric tests: Mann–Whitney, gamma, χ2 and Yule Phi coefficient. These analyses revealed relationships between 131I activities in the thyroids of the examined individuals and their housing conditions as well as consumption of meals prepared by the patients.
Highlights
Since the very beginning of nuclear medicine, 131I has been playing a key role. 131I was discovered by Glenn Seaborg and John Livingood in 1938 at the University of California, Berkeley
These individuals were family members of patients treated for hyperthyroidism or thyroid cancer (14 cases)
The current study showed that internal contamination may affect relatives of patients treated with radiopharmaceuticals
Summary
Since the very beginning of nuclear medicine (the 30–40 s of the 20th century), 131I has been playing a key role. 131I was discovered by Glenn Seaborg and John Livingood in 1938 at the University of California, Berkeley. When the dose rate drops below 5 μSv h−1 at a distance of 2 m, the patient may qualify for discharge from hospital. Such a dose rate corresponds to an activity of about 400 MBq accumulated in the patient’s body. This activity level (400–600 MBq) is used as the patient discharge limit in most European Union member states (EURATOM 1997; ICRP 2004). Another criterion is the dose rate of radiation emitted from the patient’s body
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