A comparison of the risk of stillbirth associated with paternal pre-conception irradiation in the Sellafield workforce with that of stillbirth and untoward pregnancy outcome among Japanese atomic bomb survivors

Abstract

A comparison is made of the relative risks associated with paternal pre-conception irradiation of stillbirth and untoward pregnancy outcome (stillbirths, congenital malformations, neonatal deaths) in the offspring of the Japanese atomic bomb survivors and of stillbirth in the offspring of Sellafield workers. It is concluded that the pre-conception exposure risks of stillbirth in the offspring of Sellafield workers are statistically incompatible with the Japanese data at the 5% level. Other human and experimental data relating to the induction of congenital abnormalities are briefly reviewed.