Aerosol Retention in the Respiratory Tract of Personnel in Bulgarian Radon Spas and Ore Mines

Zlatko G. Ivanov

National Center of Radiobiology and Radiation Protection, Sofia, Bulgaria
   
Corresponding author: Zlatko G. Ivanov, M.D.
    National Center of Radiobiology and Radiation Protection
    132 St. Clement Ohridsky Blvd, BG-1756 Sofia, Bulgaria

CEJOEM 1999, Vol.5. No.3-4.:274-279


Key words:
Radon and its daughters, inhalation, occupational exposure, respiratory tract, dose, limits, spas, underground mines
 
Abbreviations:
FPP = Filter Perchlorate-vinyl Petrianova
ICRP = International Commission on Radiological Protection
WL = Working level
WLM = Working Level Month


Abstract:
Obviously, the absence of dust and other detrimental compounds in the spa atmosphere is an explanation of both their therapeutical quality and the absence of occupational lung cancer among the personnel. Our own previous experiments proved through inhalation by rats that the additional non-radioactive compounds in radon mine atmosphere increases the retention of radon daughters in the respiratory system 2-3 times.
    In order to find out the personal risk for the workers in two very different types of occupational exposure, radon spas and ore mines, measurements of radioactive aerosol retention in the lung have been performed, even when the levels of radon daughters were approximately at the customary norms. A difference has been found between the expected and observed dose to lung, the latter being 2.44 and 2.88 times higher as compared to the expected one. It is probably due to a higher retention of aerosolic carriers of radon daughters in the respiratory tract than that estimated in the pertinent literature (25%). The conclusion is that the real assessment of the risk requires establishing the dose to respiratory system, instead of measuring only the level of radon progeny in the atmosphere.


Received:  26 August 1999
Accepted:  19 January 2000

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