Bone surface concentrations and dose rates 11 years after massive accidental exposure to {sup 241}Am
- Argonne National Lab., IL (United States)
- Washington State Univ., Richland, WA (United States)
Alpha-particle spectrograms of bone samples from USTUR Case 246 were analyzed to determine the depth in tissue from which the {sup 241}Am alpha-particles were emitted. In four samples of bone, the lack of energy straggling in the alpha spectra indicated that essentially all the {sup 241}Am was deposited directly on the exposed bone surface, and none had been translocated to within bone volume. These findings agree well with the results of autoradiographic examination of bone samples from the same case, but are in marked contrast to findings on another case (USTUR Case 102) who had been exposed to a much smaller amount of {sup 241}Am at a younger age and survived approximately twice as long after the exposure. It is problematical whether the lack of {sup 241}Am redistribution, and therefore the implied absence of bone remodeling, in Case 246 was due to his advanced age at exposure or to a deterministic effect of alpha-irradiation on bone metabolism, but the observation of radiation effects on bone metabolism in former radium workers supports the latter. 16 refs., 3 figs., 2 tabs.
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE
- OSTI ID:
- 230686
- Journal Information:
- Health Physics, Vol. 69, Issue 3; Other Information: PBD: Sep 1995
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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Histopathology and {sup 241}Am microdistribution in skeletal USTUR case 246
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Related Subjects
APPLIED STUDIES
AMERICIUM 241
TISSUE DISTRIBUTION
INHALATION
SKIN ABSORPTION
MAN
RADIONUCLIDE KINETICS
RADIATION ACCIDENTS
COMPARATIVE EVALUATIONS
HANFORD RESERVATION
DOSIMETRY
BIOLOGICAL RADIATION EFFECTS
OCCUPATIONAL EXPOSURE
AUTOPSY
CONTAMINATION
ACUTE EXPOSURE
SKELETON
ALPHA SPECTRA
DOSE RATES
RADIUM
BONE TISSUES