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18 May 2013

Answer to Question #5841 Submitted to "Ask the Experts"

Category: Radiation Workers

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

Dosimeters are provided to workers who may receive 10 percent or greater of the annual dose limit. How would one estimate if a worker is in the position to receive 10 percent or greater?

Unpublished data from US dosimetry companies suggests that doses to workers in medicine were on an average of 1.49 mSv/y. For workers in education and research this was closer to 4.0 mSv/y (personal correspondence).

For the period 1990-1994, UNSCEAR (2000) provided the following data for nuclear medicine in the United States: 101,500 individuals monitored, 57,370 exposed, an annual collective dose of 77.2 P-Sv, and average annual effective doses of 0.8 mSv and 1.4 mSv for monitored and exposed individuals, respectively.

NCRP (1996) provides dose estimates for nuclear medicine technologists where only unit dosages are handled and where technologists perform generator elutions and preparation of dosages. They estimated that technologists using only unit dosages would receive 1.95 mGy per 1,000 procedures while those who also elute generators and prepare the dosages would receive 3.42 mGy per 1,000 procedures. In closing this section of its report, NCRP concludes that the average annual dose for medical personnel performing x-ray and nuclear medicine procedures will be between 3 and 5 mGy per year.

NCRP 100 (radiation doses to US population) might also be useful because it includes some occupational information. If you want something very specific, you can always look at the literature for that practice. Or badge the person for one to two quarters and decide then whether or not badging needs to be continued.

Kelly Classic
Certified Medical Health Physicist

References
National Council on Radiation Protection and Measurements. Sources and magnitude of occupational and public exposures from nuclear medicine procedures. Bethesda, Maryland: NCRP; Report No. 124; 1996.

United Nations Scientific Committee on the Effects of Atomic Radiation. Sources and effects of ionizing radiation. New York: United Nations; UNSCEAR; 2000.

Answer posted on 24 October 2006. The information and material posted on this website is intended as general reference information only. Specific facts and circumstances may alter the concepts and applications of materials and information described herein. The information provided is not a substitute for professional advice and should not be relied upon in the absence of such professional advice specific to whatever facts and circumstances are presented in any given situation. Answers are correct at the time they are posted on the Website. Be advised that over time, some requirements could change, new data could be made available, or Internet links could change. For answers that have been posted for several months or longer, please check the current status of the posted information prior to using the responses for specific applications.