Assessment of uncertainty associated with measuring exposure to radon and decayproducts in the French uranium miners cohort

Abstract

The reliability of exposure data directly affects the reliability of the risk estimates derivedfrom epidemiological studies. Measurement uncertainty must be known and understoodbefore it can be corrected. The literature on occupational exposure to radon (222Rn) and its decay products reveals only a few epidemiological studies in which uncertainty hasbeen accounted for explicitly. This work examined the sources, nature, distribution andmagnitude of uncertainty of the exposure of French uranium miners to radon (222Rn) and its decay products. We estimated the total size of uncertainty for this exposure withthe root sum square (RSS) method, which may be an alternative when repeated measuresare not available. As a result, we identified six main sources of uncertainty. The total size ofthe uncertainty decreased from about 47% in the period 1956–1974 to 10% after1982, illustrating the improvement in the radiological monitoring system overtime.