title: Dose rate constants for the quantity Hp(3) for frequently used radionuclides in nuclear medicine.
abstract: According to recent studies, the human eye lens is more sensitive to ionising radiation than previously assumed. Therefore, the dose limit for personnel occupationally exposed to ionising radiation will be lowered from currently 150 mSv to 20 mSv per year. Currently, no data base for a reliable estimation of the dose to the lens of the eye is available for nuclear medicine. Furthermore, the dose is usually not monitored. The aim of this work was to determine dose rate constants for the quantity Hp(3), which is supposed to estimate the dose to the lens of the eye. For this, Hp(3)-dosemeters were fixed to an Alderson Phantom at different positions. The dosemeters were exposed to radiation from nuclides typically used in nuclear medicine in their geometries analog to their application in nuclear medicine, e.g. syringe or vial. The results show that the handling of high-energy beta (i.e. electron or positron) emitters may lead to a relevant dose to the lens of the eye. For low-energy beta emitters and gamma emitters, an exceeding of the lowered dose limit seems to be unlikely.
authors.affiliation: Department for Radiation Protection and Medical Physics, Medical School Hannover. Electronic address: szermerski.bastian@mh-hannover.de.
authors.forename: Bastian
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Szermerski
authors.affiliation: Department for Radiation Protection and Medical Physics, Medical School Hannover.
authors.forename: Iris
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Bruchmann
authors.affiliation: Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt (PTB), Bundesallee 100, 38116 Braunschweig.
authors.forename: Rolf
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Behrens
authors.affiliation: Department for Radiation Protection and Medical Physics, Medical School Hannover.
authors.forename: Lilli
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Geworski
mesh_terms: D065638:Absorption, Radiation; D005131:Eye Injuries / Q000517:prevention & control; D006801:Humans; D007908:Lens, Crystalline / Q000528:radiation effects*; D009683:Nuclear Medicine / Q000379:methods; D016273:Occupational Exposure / Q000032:analysis* / Q000517:prevention & control; D011829:Radiation Dosage; D000069079:Radiation Exposure / Q000032:analysis* / Q000517:prevention & control*; D011832:Radiation Injuries / Q000517:prevention & control; D011868:Radioisotopes / Q000032:analysis*; D011874:Radiometry / Q000379:methods*; D019275:Radiopharmaceuticals / Q000032:analysis; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity
chemical_list: D011868:Radioisotopes; D019275:Radiopharmaceuticals
keywords: Augenlinse; Dosisleistungskonstante; Katarakt; Nuklearmedizin; Ocular lens; cataract; dose rate constant; nuclear medicine