title: A comparison of winter short-term and annual average radon measurements in basements of a radon-prone region and evaluation of further radon testing indicators.
abstract: The primary objective of this study was to investigate the temporal variability between basement winter short-term (7 to 10 d) and basement annual radon measurements. Other objectives were to test the short-term measurement's diagnostic performance at two reference levels and to evaluate its ability to predict annual average basement radon concentrations. Electret ion chamber (short-term) and alpha track (annual) radon measurements were obtained by trained personnel in Iowa residences. Overall, the geometric mean of the short-term radon concentrations (199 Bq m) was slightly greater than the geometric mean of the annual radon concentrations (181 Bq m). Short-term tests correctly predicted annual radon concentrations to be above the 148 Bq m action level 88% of the time and above a 74 Bq m level 98% of the time. The short-term and annual radon concentrations were strongly correlated (r = 0.87, p < 0.0001). The foundation wall material of the basement was the only significant factor to have an impact on the absolute difference between the short-term and annual measurements. The findings from this study provide evidence of a substantially lower likelihood of obtaining a false negative result from a single short-term test in a region with high indoor radon potential when the reference level is lowered to 74 Bq m.
authors.affiliation: *Department of Occupational and Environmental Health, College of Public Health, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA 52242; †Department of Physics, St. John's University, Collegeville, MN 56321.
authors.forename: Nirmalla G
authors.initials: NG
authors.lastname: Barros
authors.forename: Daniel J
authors.initials: DJ
authors.lastname: Steck
authors.forename: R William
authors.initials: RW
authors.lastname: Field
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D003657:Decision Making; D052918:Environmental Restoration and Remediation; D005260:Female; D006798:Housing; D006801:Humans; D016014:Linear Models; D008875:Middle Aged; D011786:Quality Control; D011834:Radiation Monitoring / Q000379:methods*; D011886:Radon / Q000032:analysis* / Q000302:isolation & purification; D012621:Seasons; D013997:Time Factors
chemical_list: D011886:Radon