• Journal of Radiation Protection and Research
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• v.45 no.2
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• pp.53-68
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• 2020

Background: International organizations such as the World Health Organization (WHO) and the United Nations Scientific Committee on the Effects of Atomic Radiation (UNSCEAR) reported public exposure doses due to radionuclides released in the Fukushima nuclear accident a few years after the event. However, the reported doses were generally overestimated due to conservative assumptions such as a longer stay in deliberate areas designated for evacuation than the actual stay. After these reports had been published, more realistic dose values were reported by Japanese scientists. Materials and Methods: The present paper reviews those reports, including the most recently published articles; and summarizes estimated effective doses (external and internal) and issues related to their estimation. Results and Discussion: External dose estimation can be categorized as taking two approaches-estimation from ambient dose rate and peoples' behavior patterns-and measurements using personal dosimeters. The former approach was useful for estimating external doses in an early stage after the accident. The first 4-month doses were less than 2 mSv for most (94%) study subjects. Later on, individual doses came to be monitored by personal dosimeter measurements. On the basis of these measurements, the estimated median annual external dose was reported to be < 1 mSv in 2011 for 22 municipalities of Fukushima Prefecture. Internal dose estimation also can be categorized as taking two approaches: estimation from whole-body counting and estimation from monitoring of environmental samples such as radioactivity concentrations in food and drinking water. According to results by the former approach, committed effective dose due to ¹³⁴Cs and ¹³⁷Cs could be less than 0.1 mSv for most residents including those from evacuated areas. Conclusion: Realistic doses estimated by Japanese scientists indicated that the doses reported by WHO and UNSCEAR were generally overestimated. Average values for the first-year effective doses for residents in two affected areas (Namie Town and Iitate Village) were not likely to reach 10 mSv, the lower end of the doses estimated by WHO.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.56 no.4
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• pp.1225-1233
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• 2024

Level 3 probabilistic safety assessment (PSA) is performed to calculate radionuclide concentrations and exposure dose resulting from nuclear power plant accidents. To calculate the external exposure dose from the released radioactive materials, the radionuclide concentrations are multiplied by two factors of dose coefficient and a finite cloud dose correction factor (FCDCF), and the obtained values are summed. This indicates that a standard set of FCDCFs is required for external exposure dose calculations. To calculate a standard set of FCDCFs, the effective distance from the release point to the receptor along the wind direction should be predetermined. The TID-24190 document published in 1968 provides equations to calculate FCDCFs and the resultant standard set of FCDCFs. However, it does not provide any explanation on the effective distance required to calculate the standard set of FCDCFs. In 2021, Sandia National Laboratories (SNLs) proposed a method to predetermine finite effective distances depending on the atmospheric stability classes A to F, which results in six standard sets of FCDCFs. Meanwhile, independently of the SNLs, the authors of this paper discovered that an infinite effective distance assumption is a very reasonable approach to calculate one standard set of FCDCFs, and they implemented it into the multi-unit radiological consequence calculator (MURCC) code, which is a post-processor of the level 3 PSA codes. This paper calculates and compares short- and long-range FCDCFs calculated using the TID-24190, SNLs method, and MURCC method, and explains the strength of the MURCC method over the SNLs method. Although six standard sets of FCDCFs are required by the SNLs method, one standard sets of FCDCFs are sufficient by the MURCC method. Additionally, the use of the MURCC method and its resultant FCDCFs for level 3 PSA was strongly recommended.

• Journal of Radiation Protection and Research
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• v.41 no.3
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• pp.245-252
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• 2016

Background: Ingestion of $^{210}Po$ laden seafood accounts for a substantial amount of the effective dose of $^{210}Po$. Among seafood items, mollusks, especially domestically produced oysters and mussels, are highly enriched in $^{210}Po$ and are consumed in large quantities in Korea. Materials and Methods: Oysters and mussels around the Korean coasts were collected from major farm areas in November 2013. Samples were spiked with an aliquot of $^{209}Po$ as a yield tracer, and they were digested with $6mol{\cdot}L^{-1}$ $HNO_3$ and $H_2O_2$. The $^{210}Po$ and $^{209}Po$ were spontaneously deposited onto a silver disc in an acidic solution of $0.5mol{\cdot}L^{-1}$ HCl and measured using an alpha spectrometer. The activity concentrations of $^{210}Pb$ and $^{210}Po$ were decay corrected to the sampling date, accounting for the possible in-growth and decay of $^{210}Po$. Results and Discussion: $^{210}Po$ activity concentrations in oysters were in a range from 41.3 to $206Bq{\cdot}(kg-ww)^{-1}$ and mussels in a range from 42.9 to $46.7Bq{\cdot}(kg-ww)^{-1}$. The $^{210}Po$ activity concentration of oysters in the turbid Western coast was higher than the Southern coast. The $^{210}Po$ activity concentration of the oysters was positively correlated ($R^2=0.89$) with those of the suspended particulate matter in the surface water. The calculated annual effective dose of $^{210}Po$ from oysters and mussels consumed by the Korean population was 21-104 and $5.01-5.46{\mu}Sv{\cdot}y^{-1}$. The combined effective dose due to the consumption of oysters and mussels appears to account for about $35{\pm}19%$ of that arising from seafood consumption in the Korean population. Conclusion: The annual effective dose of $^{210}Po$ for oysters in the Korean population was found to be higher than other countries. The total annual effective dose of $^{210}Po$ due to consumption of oysters and mussels consumed in Korea was found to be $76{\pm}42{\mu}Sv{\cdot}y^{-1}$, accounting for $28{\pm}16%$ of the total effective dose of $^{210}Po$ from food in Korea.

• Journal of Radiation Protection and Research
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• v.39 no.4
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• pp.159-167
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• 2014

In Korea, July 2012, the law as called 'Act on Safety Control of Radioactive Rays Around Living Environment' was implemented to control the consumer product containing Naturally Occurring Radioactive Material (NORM), but, there are no appropriate database and effective dose calculation system. The aim of this study was to develop evaluation technique of the exposure dose with the use of the consumer products containing NORM and to understand the characteristics of the exposed dose according to the radiation type and energy. For the evaluate of exposure dose, the ICRP reference phantom was simulated by the MCNPX code based on Monte Carlo method, and the minimum, medium, maximum energy of alphas, betas, gammas from the representative NORM of Uranium decay series were used as the source term in the simulation. The annual effective doses were calculated by the exposure scenario of the consumer product usage time and position. Short range of the alpha and beta rays are mostly delivered the dose to the skin. On the other hand, the gamma rays mostly delivered the similar dose to all of the organs. The results of the annual effective dose with $1Bq{\cdot}g^{-1}$ radioactive stone-bed and 10% radioactive concentration were employed with the usage time of 7 hours 50 minute per day, the maximum annual effective dose of alphas, betas, gammas were calculated 0.0222, 0.0836, $0.0101mSv{\cdot}y^{-1}$, respectively.

• Communications for Statistical Applications and Methods
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• v.19 no.1
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• pp.33-45
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• 2012

The primary interest of drug development studies is to estimate the smallest dose that shows a significant difference from the zero-dose control. The smallest dose is called the Minimum Effective dose(MED). In this paper, we suggest a nonparametric procedure to simultaneously find the MED of each group based on placements. The Monte Carlo simulation is adapted to estimate the power and the family-wise error rate(FWE) of the new procedures with those of discussed nonparametric tests to find MED.

• Journal of radiological science and technology
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• v.46 no.5
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• pp.409-415
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• 2023

Although pediatric X-ray examinations are continuously increasing, there are not many studies on the radiation exposure to children and X-ray examination assistants according to X-ray Exposure conditions. Accordingly, we measured the radiation exposure dose of pediatric and X-ray examination assistants according to the standard guidelines and clinical average X-ray Exposure conditions when X-ray examination 10-year-old children. The effective dose and organ dose to pediatric were measured using an Dose area production meter and Monte Carlo-based PCXMC program, and the exposure dose of X-ray examination assistants was measured using an ion-chamber. When performing abdominal supine AP projection, the effective dose to children was up to 2.38 times higher under clinical average X-ray Exposure conditions than the standard guidelines. In addition, during abdominal supine AP projection, the radiation exposure dose to the X-ray examination assistants was highest on the hands at 0.0148 ~ 0.0709 mSv, and exposure dose could be reduced by up to 35% when wearing protective gloves. In conclusion, because the X-ray Exposure conditions used in clinical are unnecessarily high, unnecessary medical radiation exposure could be reduced if appropriate X-ray Exposure conditions and the radiation field area were minimized and the assistant wore shielding gloves.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.55 no.1
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• pp.254-260
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• 2023

Skeletal metastases are common in patients suffering from various primary cancers. Radiopharmaceuticals are an effective option for bone pain palliation. In this work, the radiation absorbed dose of ¹⁷⁷Lu-EDTMP radiopharmaceutical was estimated for adult man based on biodistribution data in Wistar rats. The MIRD dose calculation method and the Sparks and Aydogan methodology were applied. The results shows that about 46% of injected activity is cumulated on the surface of the trabecular and cortical bones. Radiation absorbed doses of red bone marrow and osteogenic cells were estimated to about 1.1 and 6.2 mGy/MBq, respectively. The maximum administrated activity was obtained 27 MBq/kg of body weight with an effective dose of 0.23 mSv/MBq. The results were compared with other available data from literature. This study indicated that ¹⁷⁷Lu-EDTMP provides therapeutic efficacy for achieving bone pain palliation with low undesired dose to other normal organs.

• Journal of radiological science and technology
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• v.37 no.1
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• pp.7-14
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• 2014

By using a Chest Phantom(DUKE Phantom) focusing on dose reduction of diagnostic radiation field with the most use of artificial radiation, and attempt to reduce radiation dose studies technical radiation. Publisher of the main user of the X-ray Radiological technologists, Examine the effect of reducing the radiation dose to apply additional filtering of the X-ray generator. In order to understand the organ dose and effective dose by using the PC-Based Monte Carlo Program(PCXMC) Program, the patient receives, was carried out this research. In this experiment, by applying a complex filter using a copper and Al(aluminum,13) and filtered single of using only aluminum with the condition set, and measures the number of the disk of copper indicated by DUKE Phantom. The combination of the composite filtration and filtration of a single number of the disk of the copper is the same, with the PCXMC 2.0. Program looking combination of additional filtration fewest absorbed dose was calculated effective dose and organ dose. Although depends on the use mAs, The 80 kVp AP projection conditions, it is possible to reduce the effective amount of about 84 % from about 30 % to a maximum at least. The 120 kVp PA projection conditions, it is possible to reduce the effective amount of about 71 % from about 41 % to a maximum of at least. The organ dose, dose reduction rate was different in each organ, but it showed a decrease of dose rate of 30 % to up 100 % at least. Additional filtration was used on the imaging conditions throughout the study. There was no change in terms of video quality at low doses. It was found that using the DUKE Phantom and PCXMC 2.0 Program were suitable to calculate the effect of reducing the effective dose and organ dose.

• Environmental Analysis Health and Toxicology
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• v.31
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• pp.7.1-7.6
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• 2016

Objectives The aim of this study is to evaluate radiation exposure resulting from the comprehensive health examinations of selected university hospital programs and to present basic data for research and management strategies on the health effects of medical radiation exposure. Methods Radiation-based diagnostic studies of the comprehensive health examination programs of ten university hospitals in Seoul, Korea, as introduced in their websites, were analyzed. The medical radiation studies of the programs were reviewed by radiologists. Only the effective doses of the basic studies were included in the analysis. The optional studies of the programs were excluded. Results Among the 190 comprehensive health examination programs, 132 programs (69.5%) included computed tomography studies, with an average of 1.4 scans. The average effective dose of radiation by program was 3.62 mSv for an intensive program for specific diseases; 11.12 mSv for an intensive program for cancer; 18.14 mSv for a premium program; and 24.08 mSv for an overnight program. A higher cost of a programs was linked to a higher effective dose (r=0.812). The effective doses of the examination programs for the same purposes differed by as much as 2.1 times by hospital. Inclusion of positron emission tomography-computed tomography was the most critical factor in determining the level of effective dose. Conclusions It was found that radiation exposure dose from comprehensive health exam programs targeted for an asymptomatic, healthy public reached between 3.6 and 24 times the annual dose limit for the general public. Relevant management policies at the national level should be provided to minimize medical radiation exposure.

• Journal of Environmental Health Sciences
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• v.33 no.4
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• pp.264-275
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• 2007

The objective of this study was to offer basic and scientific data for decision-making of policy for improvement and management of radon, natural radiation gas, in Korea and to form the foundation of radon related international cooperation. Therefore, this study collected and re-analysed the articles on exposure of radon in various indoor environment in journals related environment in Korea since 1980 and estimated the annual exposure dose and effective dose by exposure of radon received by inhabitants in them. The highest pooled average radon concentration of $50.17{\pm}4.08\;Bq/m^3$ (95% CI : $42.17{\sim}58.17\;Bq/m^3$) was found in dwelling house among various indoor environment. All of pooled average radon concentration estimated in this study showed lower than the guideline concentration ($148\;Bq/m^3)$ of US EPA and the Korean Ministry of Environment. The annual effective dose received by inhabitants in various indoor environment was estimated 1.071 mSv/yr. That is equal to annual effective dose (1.0 mSv/yr) by exposure of radon estimated by UNSCEAR.