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000 Radiation Safety > Radiation > Flashcards

Radiation Flashcards

1
Q

What is the truth about radiation in the environment?

A

It is everywhere and you cannot avoid it

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2
Q

Where does background radiation originate from?

A

Comic rays

Naturally occurring radiation in materials and living things

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3
Q

What is ionizing radiation produced by?

A

Unstable atoms having excess energy, mass, or both

Trying to reach stability

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4
Q

What are the 5 types of ionizing radiation?

A

Alpha, Beta, Gamma, X, and Neutron

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5
Q

What is alpha radiation?

A

Heavy, very short-range particles, travels only a few inches in the air, not an external hazard
Can’t penetrate clothes and not really skin but bad inhaled, eaten or goes near open wounds
Cannot be identified with standard instruments

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6
Q

What are examples of alpha radiation?

A

Radium, radon, uranium

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7
Q

Describe beta radiation.

A

Ejected electron that can travel several feet in the air and can penetrate human skin to the germinal layer
High levels of beta-emitting contaminants
Harmful if deposited internally and needs special instruments to be detected

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8
Q

What are examples of beta radiation?

A

Strontium-90, carbon-14, tritium and sulfer-35

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9
Q

Describe gamma and X radiations.

A

Highly penetrating electromagnetic radiation and can travel many feet in the air and can travel on human tissue
Can penetrate most materials and is easily detectable by survey meters with sodium iodide detector probe

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10
Q

What are some examples of gamma and X radiation?

A

Emission of alpha and beta rad in radioactive decay

Iodine-131, cesium-137, cobalt-60, radium-226

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11
Q

Where could neutron radiation be found?

A

Nuclear power plants, high altitude flight and some industrial sources

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12
Q

How is radiation measured in the US?

A

Gradation absorbed dose, dose equivalent, and exposure measured in rad, rem, or roentgen (R) and are all considered equal

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13
Q

How is exposure measured?

A

Estimating curies (Ci)

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14
Q

The greater the Ci the ____ the radioactivity and emitted radiation.

A

Greater

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15
Q

What is the international system for radiation measurement?

A

Gray (Gy) and sievert (Sv) for absorbed dose and equivalent dose

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16
Q

What does it mean to measure radioactivity?

A

The size or weight of a material does not indicate its activity level
Measured in curies per unit mass and depends on the half life

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17
Q

What is the SI unit for radioactivity?

A

Becquerel (Bq)

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18
Q

Radiation exposure should be limited—-

A

As Low As Reasonably Achievable (ALARA)

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19
Q

What are the general rules of ionizing radiation injuries?

A 
Damage increases 
proportionally to 
exposure
Effects may not appear 
for years following the 
exposure
Few show specificity
regarding radiation
etiology
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20
Q

What are the most studied groups of those who suffer from radiation?

A

Atomic bomb survivors
Marshall islanders
Chernobyl survivors

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21
Q

Describe characteristics of atomic bomb survivors?

A

Wide variety of malignancies
Overall incidence inc in proportion to rad dose
Breast cancer, leukemia, thyroid
Gene mutations, chromosome aberrations

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22
Q

What occurs when a radiation injury effects blood forming tissues?

A

Highly radiosensitive and changes can occur within minutes after a 1 Sv dose
Profound depression in WBC and platelets in 3-5 weeks
10 Sv is lethal over minutes or days

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23
Q

What can happen to the eye in ionizing radiation injuries?

A

Lens can obtain vision impairing cataracts in 2-3 Sv in a few minutes

24
Q

What happens to the reproductive organs in an ionizing radiation injury?

A 
Sperm count depression in both tests (.15 Sv)
Permanent sterility (4 Sv)
25
What occurs in carciongenesis?
Linked to radiation since roentgen discovery based on the radiation equipment
26
What occurs in leukemia due to ionizing radiation injuries?
All major forms increase following whole body or major hematopoietic system exposure Increase appears 2-5 yrs following exposure Incidence of cases dose dependant Possible excess exposure to nuclear plants
27
What occurs in breast cancer due to ionizing radiation injuries?
Dose-dependent inc 5-10 yrs following exposure and first age of exposure May be no threshold effects
28
What occurs in thyroid due to ionizing radiation injuries?
Malignancies seen in all major groups of exposed to radiation Tumors primarily adeomas/carcinomas with low mortality and latent periods of 10-25 yrs Females and younger ppl more incidence
29
Describe radon.
Colorless, odorless, naturally occurring, radioactive gas formed from decay of radium Found in confined areas like basements or in rocks and spring water
30
What is the major health concern of radon?
Radon daughters which produce alpha particles and lodge in respiratory tract
31
Is radon found in public water supply?
No
32
What element contains radon and might cause lung cancer?
Uranium
33
What does the EPA recommend as the standard for non-mining indoor radon levels?
4 pCi/L of air
34
What is non-ionizing radiation
Energizes or excites molecules without breaking them apart | Series of energy waves composed of oscillating electric and magnetic fields traveling at the speed of light
35
Where would non-ionizing radiation be found?
Power lines, electrical appliances, TVs, video displays, radar, microwaves
36
What are the different types f non-ionizing radiation?
``` Extremely low frequency (ELF) Electromagnetic fields (EMF) Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) Radiofrequency and Microwave rad (RF) Ultraviolet (UV) Ultrasound ```
37
Describe extremely low frequency (ELF) radiation.
Produced at 60 Hz, produced by power lines and electrical wiring Can effect Ca homeostasis, chromosome damage/RNA transcription, cell response to hormones and enzymes and NTs, cellular immune response and interacts with cancer cells
38
Describe electromagnetic fields (EMF).
Include 50-60 Hz wave lengths | Associated with alternating currents in electric power generation, power lines
39
Describe radiofrequency (RF) and microwave radiation (MW).
MW absorbed near the skin, RF maybe absorbed through body | Damage through heating
40
What is the larges source of RF and MW?
Microwave ovens
41
What are the health concerns of RF and MW?
Neurologic, behavioral, reproductive, teratogenic
42
Describe infrared radiation (IR).
Skin and eye absorb infrared radiation (IR) as head | Furnaces, heat lamps, IR lasers
43
What are the health related effects of IR?
Skin (sunburns), eye (opacities)
44
Describe ultraviolet light (UV).
High photon energy range No immediate symptoms of excessive exposure Sun, black lights, welding arcs and UV lasers
45
What are the health related effects of UV light?
Inc skin exposure and exposure to artificial light | Skin damage, melanotic skin cancer, non-melanotic skin cancer
46
Describe video display terminals (VDTs).
Radiation non-issue | No harmful emissions
47
L.A.S.E.R.S.
Light Amplification by Simulated Emissions of Radiation
48
Describe lasers.
Produce coherent, tightly focused beams of x-ray, UV, visible, or IR rad Emit optical radiations, eye and skin hazard
49
What are the health effects of lasers in medical use?
Type, power output, viewing angle, length of exposure
50
What are some adverse heath effects of lasers?
Skin - erythema, blistering, incineration Respiratory tract effects due to airborne contaminates produced Eye - epthelial stripping, granuales, haze, opacities, depends on exposure type, dependent on whether exposure is infrared, UV, or visible
51
Class I laser
No risk even if viewed directly
52
Class II laser
No injury if direct beam is viewed for 0.25 sec or less; low risk
53
Class IIA laser
Output not intended to be viewed; exposure must not exceed class I radiation for 1,000 sec
54
Class III laser
Can produce eye injury if beam is viewed even momentarily; moderate risk Medical surveillance required
55
Class IV laser
Even diffuse reflection can produce eye damage; can injure skin and may pose fire hazard Medical surveillance required

000 Radiation Safety (71 decks)

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