• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.46 no.4
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• pp.467-474
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• 2014

The aim of this paper is to describe a relatively recent international agreement on the widely debated concepts of: (i) attributing effects to low dose radiation exposure situations that have occurred in the past and, (ii) inferring radiation risk to situations that are planned to occur in the future. An important global consensus has been recently achieved on these fundamental issues at the level of the highest international intergovernmental body: the General Assembly of the United Nations. The General Assembly has welcomed with appreciation a scientific report on attributing health effects to radiation exposure and inferring risks that had been prepared the United Nations Scientific Committee on the Effects of Atomic Radiation (UNSCEAR) following a formal request by the General Assembly.

• Journal of Radiation Protection and Research
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• v.47 no.1
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• pp.22-29
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• 2022

Background: A comprehensive, traceable, and easy-to-understand radiation risk indicator is desired for radiological protection. The early-onset hypothesis could be used for this purpose. Materials and Methods: An indicator for early death (IED) was developed and calculated using the epidemiological dataset from the 14^th Report of the Life Span Study (LSS) of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. By clarifying the calculation process, IED for all-cause mortality was estimated. In addition, the characteristics of IED for solid cancer mortality and cardiovascular mortality as well as those of men and women, and their dependence on age at exposure were investigated for detailed analysis. Results and Discussion: The IED for all-cause mortality was estimated to be approximately 4 years for an acute radiation exposure of 1 Gy regardless of the fitting dose range. The cumulative death rate for all solid cancers also indicated the early-death tendency (approximately 7-10 years at 1 Gy). Although, there is a slight difference in the characteristics of the risk obtained from the LSS study and this study, it is considered that the IED in a unit of years can also be used to show the overall picture of risk due to radiation exposure. Conclusion: We developed and calculated the indicator for early death, IED, for the cumulative mortality rate of all causes of death, all solid cancers, and circulatory diseases. The quantitative values of IED were estimated to be 4 years for all causes of death, 7-10 years for all solid cancers. IED has an advantage for intuitively understanding the meaning of radiation risk since it can be obtained by a simple and traceable method.

• Journal of Radiation Protection and Research
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• v.4 no.1
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• pp.29-35
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• 1979

Comparison of the risk of death due to radiation exposure with the same risk due to occupational hazards in other safe industries underlines the importance of the ALARA principle. The outlined responsibilities and listed examples presented here can serve as a basis for expanding and developing the concepts necessary for its successful application.

• Journal of radiological science and technology
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• v.21 no.2
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• pp.26-30
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• 1998

We tried to study in order to furnish the data for medical exposure dose and scattered ray in radiography. As the tables(from 1 to 3) show, we can presume, by means of a concrete numerical value, the amount of results affected by patient radiation exposure dose and somatic effect in radiography. However, there are many difficulties in the difference of exposure factor in each hospital, the accuracy of measuring by tracebility, shortage of exposure dose data especially in the area of children, and portable radiography, etc. In the radiation examination, it is considered if the gained benefit to the patient due to radiation is more than the risk of radiation, then the medical exposure is thought to be justified. Therefore, the radiotechnologists should continually make an effort to develop and study new techniques so as to reduce patient exposure dose.

• The Korean Journal of Pain
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• v.31 no.4
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• pp.244-252
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• 2018

C-arm fluoroscopy is useful equipment in interventional pain management because it helps to guide correct needle targeting for the accurate injection and drug delivery. However, due to increased use of C-arm fluoroscopy in various pain procedures, the risk of radiation exposure is a significant concern for pain physicians. The harmful biological effects of ionizing radiation on the human body are well known. It is therefore necessary to strive to reduce radiation exposure. Lead aprons with thyroid shields are the most fundamental radiation protective devices for interventional procedures, and are very effective. However, the operator's radiation safety cannot be guaranteed because pain physicians seem to lack sufficient interest, knowledge, and awareness about radiation safety. Also, inappropriate care and use of radiation protective devices may result in a higher risk of radiation exposure. The purpose of this article was to review the literature on radiation safety with a focus on lead aprons and thyroid shields and present recommendations related to those devices during C-arm fluoroscopic-guided interventions by pain physicians.

• Journal of Radiation Protection and Research
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• v.31 no.2
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• pp.53-63
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• 2006

The increased risk of cancer with exposure to low-dose radiation was estimated through longitudinal study for radiation workers at the nuclear power plants in Korea. The radiation dose data were collected from the Radiation Safety Management System(RSMS) of the Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power Co., Ltd(KHNP). The cancer risks with radiation exposure were evaluated in terms of relative mortality ratios(RMR) and relative incidence ratios(RIR) to the unexposed employees at the nuclear power plants, and of the standardized mortality ratios(SMR) and standardized incidence ratios(SIR). There were no significant increases of canters of all sites in the exposed group either in RIR[1.08, 95% confidence interval(CI) 0.74-1.58] or in RMR[1.21, CI 0.70-2.08]. Neither SIR[0.81, CI 0.28-0.96] nor SMR[0.86, CI 0.66-1.10] significantly deviated from 1.0 for cancers of all sites. The trend analysis did not identify evident dose-response relationship due to insufficient numbers of the cases. Consequently, it is concluded that increases in cancer risks in the radiation worker group exposed to low doses at the nuclear power plants in Korea are not identified at this time.

• The korean journal of orthodontics
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• v.51 no.3
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• pp.189-198
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• 2021

Objective: To estimate the projected cancer risk attributable to diagnostic cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT) performed under different exposure settings for orthodontic purposes in children and adults. Methods: We collected a list of CBCT machines and their specifications from 38 orthodontists. Organ doses were estimated using median and maximum exposure settings of 105 kVp/156.8 mAs and 130 kVp/200 mAs, respectively. The projected cancer risk attributable to CBCT procedures performed 1-3 times within 2 years was calculated for children (aged 5 and 10 years) and adult (aged 20, 30, and 40 years) male and female patients. Results: For maximum exposure settings, the mean lifetime fractional ratio (LFR) was 14.28% for children and 0.91% for adults; this indicated that the risk to children was 16 times the risk to adults. For median exposure settings, the mean LFR was 5.25% and 0.58% for children and adults, respectively. The risk of cancer decreased with increasing age. For both median and maximum exposure settings, females showed a higher risk of cancer than did males in all age groups. Cancer risk increased with an increase in the frequency of CBCT procedures within a given period. Conclusions: The projected dental CBCT-associated cancer risk spans over a wide range depending on the machine parameters and image acquisition settings. Children and female patients are at a higher risk of developing cancer associated with diagnostic CBCT. Therefore, the use of diagnostic CBCT should be justified, and protective measures should be taken to minimize the harmful biological effects of radiation.

• Journal of radiological science and technology
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• v.41 no.4
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• pp.339-344
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• 2018

Humans received an exposure dose of 2.4 mSv of natural radiation per year, of which the contribution of spacecraft accounts for about 75%. The crew of the aircraft has increased radiation exposure doses based on cosmic radiation safety management regulations There is no reference to air passengers. Therefore, in this study, we measured the radiation exposure dose received in the sky at high altitude during flight, and tried to compare the radiation exposure dose received by ordinary people during flight. We selected 20 sample specimens, including major tourist spots and the capital by continent with direct flights from Incheon International Airport. Using the CARI-6/6M model and the NAIRAS model, which are cosmic radiation prediction models provided at the National Radio Research Institute, we measured the cosmic radiation exposure dose by the selected flight and departure/arrival place. In the case of exposure dose, Beijing was the lowest at $2.87{\mu}Sv$ (NAIRAS) and $2.05{\mu}Sv$ (CARI - 6/6M), New York had the highest at $146.45{\mu}Sv$ (NAIRAS) and $79.42{\mu}Sv$ (CARI - 6/6M). We found that the route using Arctic routes at the same time and distance will receive more exposure dose than other paths. While the dose of cosmic radiation to be received during flight does not have a decisive influence on the human body, because of the greater risk of stochastic effects in the case of frequent flights and in children with high radiation sensitivity Institutional regulation should be prepared for this.

• The Journal of the Korean dental association
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• v.52 no.3
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• pp.147-152
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• 2014

Recently the patient exposure by medical and dental x-ray examination has grown rapidly and diagnostic radiology represents the largest source of man-made radiation. For the patient protection, the principle of justification and optimization should be followed. All the radiographic examinations have to show a potential benefit to the patient weighing against the potential risk. After they are justified, the radiographic exposure should be kept as low as reasonably achievable, taking into account economic and social factors. For the safe use of radiation in dentistry, the radiation safety management in accordance with the legislation is important. The present status and the future of radiation safety management in dental radiology in Korea and other country will be discussed.

• Journal of Radiation Protection and Research
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• v.48 no.2
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• pp.59-67
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• 2023

Background: This study aims to reevaluate natural radiation exposure, following up on our previous study conducted in 2019, and to assess the associated risk of lung cancer to the public residing in the gold mining areas of Betare-Oya, east Cameroon, and its vicinity. Materials and Methods: Gamma-ray spectra collected using a 7.62 cm×7.62 cm in NaI(Tl) scintillation spectrometer during a car-borne survey, in situ measurements and laboratory measurements performed in previous studies were used to determine the outdoor absorbed dose rate in air to evaluate the annual external dose inhaled by the public. For determining internal exposure, radon gas concentrations were measured and used to estimate the inhalation dose while considering the inhalation of radon and its decay products. Results and Discussion: The mean value of the laboratory-measured outdoor gamma dose rate was 47 nGy/hr, which agrees with our previous results (44 nGy/hr) recorded through direct measurements (in situ and car-borne survey). The resulting annual external dose (0.29±0.09 mSv/yr) obtained is similar to that of the previous study (0.33±0.03 mSv/yr). The total inhalation dose resulting from radon isotopes and their decay products ranged between 1.96 and 9.63 mSv/yr with an arithmetic mean of 3.95±1.65 mSv/yr. The resulting excess lung cancer risk was estimated; it ranged from 62 to 216 excess deaths per million persons per year (MPY), 81 to 243 excess deaths per MPY, or 135 excess deaths per MPY, based on whether risk factors reported by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, United Nations Scientific Committee on the effects of Atomic Radiation, or International Commission on Radiological Protection were used, respectively. These values are more than double the world average values reported by the same agencies. Conclusion: There is an elevated level of risk of lung cancer from indoor radon in locations close to the Betare-Oya gold mining region in east Cameroon. Therefore, educating the public on the harmful effects of radon exposure and considering some remedial actions for protection against radon and its progenies is necessary.