title: Health effects of radiation and other health problems in the aftermath of nuclear accidents, with an emphasis on Fukushima.
abstract: 437 nuclear power plants are in operation at present around the world to meet increasing energy demands. Unfortunately, five major nuclear accidents have occurred in the past--ie, at Kyshtym (Russia [then USSR], 1957), Windscale Piles (UK, 1957), Three Mile Island (USA, 1979), Chernobyl (Ukraine [then USSR], 1986), and Fukushima (Japan, 2011). The effects of these accidents on individuals and societies are diverse and enduring. Accumulated evidence about radiation health effects on atomic bomb survivors and other radiation-exposed people has formed the basis for national and international regulations about radiation protection. However, past experiences suggest that common issues were not necessarily physical health problems directly attributable to radiation exposure, but rather psychological and social effects. Additionally, evacuation and long-term displacement created severe health-care problems for the most vulnerable people, such as hospital inpatients and elderly people.
authors.affiliation: Department of Radiation Disaster Medicine, Fukushima Medical University, Fukushima, Japan.
authors.forename: Arifumi
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Hasegawa
authors.affiliation: Fukushima Global Medical Science Center, Fukushima Medical University, Fukushima, Japan. Electronic address: tanigawa@fmu.ac.jp.
authors.forename: Koichi
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Tanigawa
authors.affiliation: Department of Radiation Health Management, Fukushima Medical University, Fukushima, Japan.
authors.forename: Akira
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Ohtsuru
authors.affiliation: Department of Neuropsychiatry, Fukushima Medical University, Fukushima, Japan.
authors.forename: Hirooki
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Yabe
authors.affiliation: Department of Disaster Psychiatry, Fukushima Medical University, Fukushima, Japan.
authors.forename: Masaharu
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Maeda
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, National Defense Medical College, Tokorozawa, Japan.
authors.forename: Jun
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Shigemura
authors.affiliation: Department of Epidemiology, Fukushima Medical University, Fukushima, Japan.
authors.forename: Tetsuya
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Ohira
authors.affiliation: Department of Radiation Emergency Medical Assistance Team Medical Section, Chiba, Japan.
authors.forename: Takako
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Tominaga
authors.affiliation: National Institute of Radiological Sciences, Chiba, Japan.
authors.forename: Makoto
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Akashi
authors.affiliation: Department of Emergency and Critical Care Medicine, Hiroshima University, Hiroshima, Japan.
authors.forename: Nobuyuki
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Hirohashi
authors.affiliation: Department of Radiation Physics and Chemistry, Fukushima Medical University, Fukushima, Japan.
authors.forename: Tetsuo
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Ishikawa
authors.affiliation: Department of Experimental Oncology, Research Institute for Radiation Biology and Medicine, Hiroshima University, Hiroshima, Japan.
authors.forename: Kenji
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Kamiya
authors.affiliation: Department of Global Health Policy, Graduate School of Medicine, University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan.
authors.forename: Kenji
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Shibuya
authors.affiliation: Department of Radiation Medical Sciences, Atomic Bomb Disease Institute, Nagasaki University, Nagasaki, Japan.
authors.forename: Shunichi
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Yamashita
authors.affiliation: Cambodia Development Resource Institute, Phnom Penh, Cambodia.
authors.forename: Rethy K
authors.initials: RK
authors.lastname: Chhem
mesh_terms: D004190:Disasters / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D062406:Fukushima Nuclear Accident; D006801:Humans; D007564:Japan; D055848:Nuclear Power Plants; D011634:Public Health; D011832:Radiation Injuries / Q000453:epidemiology; D018788:Radioactive Hazard Release / Q000523:psychology; D012036:Refugees / Q000523:psychology*; D012426:Russia; D014455:Ukraine; D006113:United Kingdom; D014481:United States