HEALTH ASSESSMENT OF CHRONIC EXPOSED PERSONNEL TO IONIZING RADIATION

Abstract

Objectives. The increasing incidence of oncological diseases requires the widespread use of radiological investigations, where active radiologists, considered professionally exposed. Medical surveillance makes it possible to determine the state of health of those exposed, in terms of their ability to carry out their activity. The aim of the research was to establish the particularities of health indicators of occupational exposures to ionizing radiation. Materials and methods. The data from the medical register of professional exposures, involved in radiological practices, recorded in Centre Medical-Territorial Association, Chișinău, Republic of Moldova, were analyzed. The data regarding the individual dosimetric monitoring of the professional exposures, performed by the Individual Dosimetric Monitoring Laboratory of National Agency for public Health, were analyzed at the same time. Results. The values of the laboratory analyzes, for the contingent included in the study, corresponded to the present norms. In people over the age of 50, hemoglobin values were below the reference values, which is explained by the fact that, with age, health indices deviate from the norm and resistance to disease decreases due to immune system deficiency. No cases of over-radiation were detected. The level of irradiation of those exposed, in the vast majority, was below the value of 1 mSv/year, a dose comparable to the natural radioactive background. Conclusions. The results of the study show compliance with the requirements of radiation protection, according to national/European norms, in the activities of occupational exposures (radiologists involved in the practices of ionizing radiation therapy and radiodiagnosis), a fact confirmed by the values of laboratory tests.

Keywords

• radiological investigations
• radiodiagnosis
• ionizing radiation therapy
• individual physical dosimetry
• hematological analysis