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Title: Studies illuminate hazards of ingested radiation

Journal Article · · JAMA, J. Am. Med. Assoc.; (United States)

Dial painting required a deft hand and a finely pointed brush. While the first attribute may have been hereditary, the second was easily acquired. All it took to keep a brush pointed was a quick touch to the lips or tongue. Lip tipping passed particles of the sticky paint to the teeth and tongue; it also transferred from 3 to 43 ..mu..g of radioactive substances each day. In its 63rd year, the Argonne Radium Study, as it is now known, is to radiobiology what the Framingham Study is to cardiology. Not only has it furnished an understanding of the acute and late effects of radium ingestion, it has also provided a model for understanding calcium deposition and bone growth. Both the study's most impressive contribution is that it served as a basis for guidelines for exposure to plutonium and other bone-seeking radionuclides employed during the Manhattan Project.

OSTI ID:
6018366
Journal Information:
JAMA, J. Am. Med. Assoc.; (United States), Vol. 258:5
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English

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