Answer to Question #1672 Submitted to "Ask the Experts"

Category: Doses and Dose Calculations — Basic dose information, dose quantities, units

The following question was answered by an expert in the appropriate field:

What is the "whole body dose" and how is it calculated?

The "whole body dose" is the total energy absorbed by the body, divided by its total mass. This is a fairly meaningful quantity if the whole body is irradiated in a more or less uniform manner. If the energy deposition is localized, however, taking the energy deposited in a small mass of tissue and dividing by the mass of the whole body (usually assumed to be about 70 kg) produces a number that may have little meaning biologically. Whole-body dose is often reported for both internal and external types of radiation exposure, but it is sometimes not the quantity of most interest to radiation protection, so it should be used with caution.

Michael G. Stabin, PhD, CHP

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