Environ Health Toxicol.  2015 ;30(1):e2015005. 10.5620/eht.e2015005.

Assessment of radiation exposure from cesium-137 contaminated roads for epidemiological studies in Seoul, Korea

• Lee YK
• Ju YS
• Lee WJ
• Hwang SS
• Yim SH
• Yoo SC
• Lee J
• Choi KH
• Burm E
• Ha M

• KMID: 2380081
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.5620/eht.e2015005

Abstract

OBJECTIVES
We aimed to assess the radiation exposure for epidemiologic investigation in residents exposed to radiation from roads that were accidentally found to be contaminated with radioactive cesium-137 (137Cs) in Seoul.
METHODS
Using information regarding the frequency and duration of passing via the 137Cs contaminated roads or residing/working near the roads from the questionnaires that were obtained from 8875 residents and the measured radiation doses reported by the Nuclear Safety and Security Commission, we calculated the total cumulative dose of radiation exposure for each person.
RESULTS
Sixty-three percent of the residents who responded to the questionnaire were considered as ever-exposed and 1% of them had a total cumulative dose of more than 10 mSv. The mean (minimum, maximum) duration of radiation exposure was 4.75 years (0.08, 11.98) and the geometric mean (minimum, maximum) of the total cumulative dose was 0.049 mSv (<0.001, 35.35) in the exposed.
CONCLUSIONS
An individual exposure assessment was performed for an epidemiological study to estimate the health risk among residents living in the vicinity of 137Cs contaminated roads. The average exposure dose in the exposed people was less than 5% of the current guideline.

Keyword

Accidental contamination; Cesium-137; Epidemiological studies; Radiation exposure assessment

MeSH Terms

Epidemiologic Studies*
Humans
Korea*
Radiation Exposure*
Seoul*