Ch. 1 Intro to Rad Protection
radionuclide
An unstable nucleus that emits one or more forms of ionizing radiation to achieve greater stability.
organic damage
changes in blood count
alpha particle
contains two protons and two neutrons
The degree to which the diagnostic study accurately reveals the presence or absence of disease in the patient, defines what?
diagnostic efficacy
What word describes the overall risk of exposure?
effective dose
radiation
energy that passes from one location to another and can have many manifestations
sievert (Sv)
SI unit of measure for the EqD.
What is BERT?
(background equivalent to radiation time) comparison of the amount of radiation received by the patient for a procedure with natural background radiation Example: A chest x-ray is equivalent to 10 days of natural radiation.
An effective radiation safety program requires a firm commitment to radiation safety by:
1. facilities providing imaging services 2. radiation workers
A patient may elect to assume the relatively small risk of exposure to ionizing radiation to obtain essential diagnostic medical information when:
1. illness occurs 2. injury occurs 3. a specific imaging procedure for health screening purposes is prudent
What was the total average annual effective dose from manmade and natural radiation as of 1987?
3.6 mSv (360 mrem) per year
An equivalent dose as low as 0.25 Sv (25 rem) delivered to the whole body may cause what within a few days?
A decrease in the number of lymphocytes in the circulating blood
To make patients feel more at ease, we use...
BERT
What is a method that can be used to answer patient questions about the amount of radiation received from a radiographic procedure?
BERT
genetic damage
Biologic effects of ionizing radiation or other agents on generations yet unborn
biologic effects
Damage to living tissue of animals and human beings exposed to radiation.
electromagnetic wave
Electric and magnetic fields that fluctuate rapidly as they travel through space, including radio waves, microwaves, visible light, and x-rays.
cellular damage
Injury on the cellular level caused by sufficient exposure to ionizing radiation at the molecular level.
Synonym for ALARA
ORP- optimization for rad. protection
ionizing radiation
Produces positively and negatively charged particles (ions) when passing through matter
fallout
Radiation produced as a consequence of nuclear weapons testing and chemical explosions in nuclear power plants.
natural background radiation
Terrestrial- radioactive materials in the crust of the earth Cosmic- solar from the sun, and galactic beyond the solar system Internal- from radionuclides in the body tissue -when increased because of human actions, it is termed 'enhanced natural sources'
radon
causes 55% of human exposure to natural background radiation
rem
Traditional unit of measure for the EqD.
ALARA
as low as reasonably achievable
occupational and nonoccupational doses
expressed as EfD
electromagnetic spectrum
full range of frequencies and wavelengths of electromagnetic waves
What is recognized as the MAIN adverse health effect rom the 1986 Chernobyl nuclear power accident?
increase in the incidence of thyroid cancer in children and adolescents
manmade/ artificial radiation
made by humans -consumer products, air travel,medical, nuclear as of 198, manmade contributed to 0.65mSv (65 mrem) to the average annual radiation exposure of U.S.
On what levels, does ionizing radiation produce electrically charged particles that cause biological damage?
molecular, cellular, and organic
Radon is in what category?
natural radiation
biologic damage
produced while radiation penetrates body tissues primarily by ejecting electrons from the atoms composing the tissue
Effective measures employed by radiation workers to safeguard patients, personnel, and the general public from unnecessary exposure to ionizing radiation defines:
radiation protection
equivalent dose (EqD)
radiation quantity used for radiation protection purposes when a person receives exposure from various types of ionizing radiation attempts to numerically specify the differences in biologic harm that are produced by different types of radiation enables the calculation of EfD
What are natural sources of ionizing radiation?
radioactive elements in the crust of the earth and in the human body
ionization
removal of electron foundation of the interactions of x-rays with human tissue
effective dose (EfD)
takes into account the dose for all types of ionizing radiation to irritated organs or tissues in the human body uses weighting factors for each body part to account the chance of each of these body parts for developing radiation-induced cancer (or genetic damage in reproductive organs)
Who is responsible to reduce rad dose and minimize exposure time?
the rad tech
Ionizing radiation is both beneficial and destructive. True/ False
true