Exposure to low levels of radiation in the environment does not cause immediate health effects. But it can slightly increase your overall risk of cancer. Before they start treatment, health care professionals need to figure out how much radiation your body absorbed. They will ask about your symptoms, do blood tests, and may use a device that measures radiation.
They also try get more information about the exposure, such as what type of radiation it was, how far away you were from the source of the radiation, and how long you were exposed. Treatment focuses on reducing and treating infections, preventing dehydration , and treating injuries and burns. Some people may need treatments that help the bone marrow recover its function.
If you were exposed to certain types of radiation, your provider may give you a treatment that limits or removes the contamination that is inside your body. You may also get treatments for your symptoms. The information on this site should not be used as a substitute for professional medical care or advice. Contact a health care provider if you have questions about your health. Radiation Exposure.
Learn More Related Issues Specifics. See, Play and Learn No links available. Research Clinical Trials Journal Articles. Resources Find an Expert. What is radiation? There are two types: Non-ionizing radiation, which includes radio waves, cell phones, microwaves, infrared radiation and visible light Ionizing radiation, which includes ultraviolet radiation, radon , x-rays , and gamma rays What are the sources of radiation exposure?
What are the health effects of radiation exposure? The amount of damage that exposure to radiation can cause depends on several factors, including The type of radiation The dose amount of radiation How you were exposed, such as through skin contact, swallowing or breathing it in, or having rays pass through your body Where the radiation concentrates in the body and how long it stays there How sensitive your body is to radiation.
A fetus is most vulnerable to the effects of radiation. Infants, children, older adults, pregnant women, and people with compromised immune systems are more vulnerable to health effects than healthy adults.
What are the treatments for acute radiation sickness? Because of this radiation, these elements are too dangerous and unstable to be used in everyday applications.
Some radioactive elements can also be synthesized in nuclear reactors, like Cobalt These types of gamma radiation do interact with our DNA, but rather than transforming into our own version of the Hulk, our DNA is mutated or destroyed.
In cases of extreme exposure, this could lead to illnesses such as cancer or death. To make this relatable, the human body can only withstand about 3 Grays Gy of radiation before dying.
Some microbes, like the Deinococcus and Thermococcus groups, can repair their DNA and even switch metabolisms under the harsh conditions to survive up to ten thousand times that amount.
Ionizing radiation is a type of high energy radiation that carries enough energy to remove electrons from atoms or molecules. Scientists from South Korea, Nigeria, USA, and China wanted to know how ionizing radiation, such as gamma radiation, would impact microorganisms living in soil.
The scientists collected 15 soil samples from the campus of Seoul National University, where there is a cool humid temperate climate. They brought the soils back to the lab and subjected the samples to 5 treatments. They had a pre-treatment set to test the soil samples before any radiation was applied, and a control set that would never receive radiation exposure.
After the six weeks of radiation, they extracted DNA from soil in all the tests, and used a technique called metagenomics to compare the organisms still around in the low, medium, and high radiation soils. Alpha radiation is not able to penetrate turnout gear, clothing, or a cover on a probe. Neutrons are uncharged sub atomic particles produced by the fission of radioactive atoms.
Within tissue, neutrons predominantly lose energy in collisions with protons in the nuclei of hydrogen atoms, in body water. The interaction results in ionisation within the tissue atoms so irradiated. Except at lethal levels the neutron flux is not sufficiently high to cause the tissue to become radioactive. Table 1. Different types of radiation have different effects on human tissue gray for gray, alpha particles and neutrons are more damaging than beta particles, gamma rays or X-rays in terms of the risks of cancer or of heritable genetic defects , so the absorbed dose in tissue is multiplied by a radiation weighting factor to account for this.
This gives the equivalent dose to an organ or tissue , measured in sievert Sv. The amount of damage caused by exposure to radiation depends on the efficiency with which it transfers energy into body tissues. Radiation comprised of particles with relatively high mass delivers a greater proportion of their energy into tissues than do electromagnetic radiation, such as x-rays and gamma-rays, which may pass through the body.
Reference: Recommendations for limiting exposure to ionizing radiation and national standard for limiting occupational exposure to ionizing radiation republished ; Radiation Protection Series No.
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Equivalent doses are measured in Sieverts Sv , which is equal to the absorbed dose in Grays multiplied by the weighting factor. Tissues differ in their susceptibility to radiation for a given absorbed dose. Some organs are more radiosensitive than others e. Radiation Exposure Regardless of where or how an incident involving radiation happens, three types of radiation-induced injury can occur: external irradiation, contamination with radioactive materials, and incorporation of radioactive material into body cells, tissues, or organs.
External irradiation is exposure to penetrating radiation from a radiation source. People exposed to a source of radiation can suffer radiation illness if their dose is high enough, but they do not become radioactive. For example, an x-ray machine is a source of radiation exposure. A person does not become radioactive or pose a risk to others following a chest x-ray. Irradiation occurs when all or part of the body is exposed to radiation from an unshielded source. External irradiation does not make a person radioactive.
Radioactive contamination occurs when material that contains radioactive atoms is deposited on skin, clothing, or any place where it is not desired. If is important to remember that radiation does not spread or get "on" or "in" people; rather it is radioactive contamination that can spread. A person contaminated with radioactive materials will be irradiated until the source of radiation the radioactive material is removed. A person is externally contaminated if radioactive material is on skin or clothing A person is internally contaminated if radioactive material is breathed in, swallowed, or absorbed through wounds The environment is contaminated if radioactive material is spread about or uncontained The third type of radiation injury that can occur is incorporation of radioactive material.
Incorporation refers to the uptake of radioactive materials by body cells, tissues, and target organs such as bone, liver, thyroid, or kidney. In general, radioactive materials are distributed throughout the body based upon their chemical properties.
Incorporation cannot occur unless contamination has occurred. These three types of exposures can happen in combination and can be complicated by physical injury or illness.
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