Description

Radiation sickness is damage to the body caused by a large dose of radiation often received over a short period of time. This is called acute radiation sickness. The amount of radiation absorbed by the body, called the absorbed dose, the severity of the disease.

The radiation sickness is also called acute radiation syndrome or radiation poisoning. Radiation sickness is not caused by common imaging medical evidence that the use of low-dose radiation, such as X-rays, CT scans, and nuclear medicine scans.

Although radiation sickness is serious and often fatal, it's rare. Since the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, in Japan, during the second World War, the majority of cases of radiation sickness have occurred after the nuclear, industrial accidents, such as the 1986 fire that damaged the nuclear power plant in Chernobyl, Ukraine.

Symptoms

The severity of disease by radiation of symptoms depends on the amount of radiation you've absorbed. How much you absorb depends on the strength of the radiated energy, the time of exposure, and the distance between you and the radiation source.

The symptoms are also affected by the type of exposure, such as all or part of the body. The severity of disease by radiation also depends on the sensitivity of the affected tissue is. For example, the gastrointestinal system and bone marrow are very sensitive to radiation.

The initial symptoms

The first symptoms of the disease treatable disease by radiation, are usually nausea and vomiting. The amount of time between exposure and when these symptoms develop, it is an indication of the amount of radiation a person has absorbed.

After the first round of the symptoms, a person with the disease of radiation may have a brief period of time without noticeable of the disease, followed by the emergence of new and more severe symptoms.

If you have had a mild exposure, which can last for a few hours, weeks before symptoms begin. But with high exposure, the symptoms may begin from minutes to days after exposure.

The possible symptoms include:

  • Nausea and vomiting.
  • The diarrhea.
  • The pain of a headache.
  • Fever.
  • Dizziness and disorientation.
  • Weakness and fatigue.
  • The loss of hair.
  • Blood in vomit and stools from internal bleeding.
  • Infections.
  • The low blood pressure.

When to see a doctor

An accident or an attack that causes radiation sickness may lead to a great amount of attention and public concern. If an event happens, listen to the radio, the television or the online reports to learn about the emergency instructions from your area.

If you know that you have been exposed to the radiation, seek emergency medical attention.

Causes

Radiation sickness is caused by exposure to a high dose of radiation. Radiation is the energy released from the atom as a wave or a tiny particle of matter.

Radiation sickness occurs when the high-energy radiation damages or destroys certain cells in the body. The areas of the body most exposed to the risk of being affected by the high-energy radiation are the cells of the bone marrow and the lining of the intestinal tract.

Risk factors

Being exposed to a source of high doses of radiation increases the risk of disease by radiation. Sources of high doses of radiation are:

  • An accident at a nuclear power plant in the industrial plant.
  • A nuclear attack in the industrial plant.
  • A small radioactive device going off.
  • An explosive device that sent the radioactive material. This is called a dirty bomb.
  • A nuclear weapon going off.

Complications

Having the disease radiation may contribute to both short-term and long-term mental health problems, such as pain, fear and anxiety about:

  • Experiencing a radioactive accident or attack.
  • The mourning of the family or friends that have not survived.
  • To deal with the uncertainty of a mysterious and potentially fatal disease.
  • Worry about the potential risk of cancer due to exposure to radiation.

Prevention

In the case of a radiation emergency, listen to the radio or watch the tv to listen to what the protection actions of local, state and federal authorities recommend. The actions depend on the situation, but told to stay in place or evacuate your area.

Shelter in place

If you are advised to stay where you are, whether you're at home or at work or in other places, do the following:

  • Close and lock all doors and windows.
  • Turn off fans, air conditioners and heating units that bring air from the outside.
  • Near the vents.
  • Bring your pets inside the house.
  • Go to an interior room or basement.
  • Stay tuned to your emergency response network or in the local news.
  • Stay for at least 24 hours.

Evacuate

If advised to evacuate, follow the instructions provided by local authorities. Try to stay calm and move quickly and in an orderly manner. Journey to the light, but take the supplies, including:

  • The flashlight.
  • Portable Radio.
  • The batteries.
  • First-aid kit.
  • The necessary medications.
  • Sealing of food, such as canned food and bottled water.
  • Manual Can Opener.
  • Cash and credit cards.
  • Extra Clothing.

Be aware that most of the emergency vehicles and shelters do not accept pets. Take only if you're driving your own vehicle and go somewhere that is not a safe haven.

Diagnosis

When a person has experienced known or probable exposure to a high dose of radiation from an accident or attack, medical personnel take a number of steps to determine the absorption of the radiation dose. This information is essential to determine the severity of the disease is more likely that treatments to use and whether a person is likely to survive.

Important information for the determination of the absorbed dose includes:

  • Known exposure. Details about distance from the source of radiation and duration of exposure may help to provide a rough estimate of the severity of disease by radiation.
  • Vomiting, and other symptoms. The time between exposure to radiation and when the vomiting starts is a fairly accurate screening tool for the estimation of the radiation dose absorbed. The shorter the time before vomiting starts, the higher the dose. The severity and the time of the other symptoms that can also help the medical staff to determine the absorbed dose.
  • Blood tests. Frequent blood tests over several days to enable medical personnel to locate the drops in the fight against the disease, white blood cells, and unusual changes in the DNA of blood cells. These factors indicate the degree of damage to the bone marrow, which is determined by the level of absorbed dose.
  • Dosimeter. A device called a dosimeter can measure the absorbed dose of radiation, but only if it was exposed to the same radiation event as the affected person.
  • Survey meter. A device such as a Geiger counter can be used to test the people to see in that part of the body of the radioactive particles are found.
  • The type of radiation. A part of the large emergency response to a radioactive accident or attack to identify the type of radiation exposure. This information would guide some decisions for the treatment of people with radiation sickness.

Treatment

The goals of the treatment of disease by radiation, they are to prevent further radioactive contamination; treatment of life-threatening injuries, such as trauma and burns; to reduce the symptoms and manage the pain.

Decontamination

Decontamination involves removing external radioactive particles. Removing clothing and shoes eliminates about 90 percent of external contamination. Gently wash with water and soap removes additional radiation particles from the skin.

Decontamination prevents radioactive material from spreading more. It also reduces the risk of internal contamination from inhalation, ingestion or open wounds.

The treatment for the damage of the bone marrow

A protein called granulocyte colony-stimulating factor, which promotes the growth of white blood cells, may counteract the effect of the radiation of the disease in the bone marrow. The treatment with this protein-based medicine, which includes filgrastim (Neupogen), sargramostim (Leukine) and pegfilgrastim (Neulasta), can increase the production of white blood cells and help to prevent subsequent infections.

If you have a serious bone marrow damage, you may also receive transfusions of red blood cells or platelets in the blood.

The treatment for internal contamination

Some treatments can reduce the damage to internal organs caused by radioactive particles. The medical staff could use these treatments only if you have been exposed to a particular type of radiation. These treatments include the following:

  • The iodide of potassium.This is a type of non-radioactive iodine. Iodine is essential for the proper functioning of the thyroid. If you are exposed to significant radiation, the thyroid from absorbing radioactive iodine (radioiodine), as well as other forms of iodine. The radioactive iodine is the time cleared from the body in the urine. If you take potassium iodide, it can fill 'vacancies' in the thyroid and prevent the absorption of radioactive iodine. The iodide of potassium is not a cure-all and is more effective if taken within a day of exposure.
  • Prussian blue (Radiogardase). This type of dye binds to the particles of radioactive elements known as cesium and thallium. The radioactive particles, then passing out of the body in the stool. This treatment speeds up the elimination of the radioactive particles and reduces the amount of radiation that the cells can absorb.
  • Diethylenetriamine pentaacetic acid (DTPA). This substance binds to the metals. DTPA binds to the particles of the radioactive elements plutonium, americium and curium. The radioactive particles leave the body in the urine. That reduces the amount of radiation absorbed.

The iodide of potassium. This is a type of non-radioactive iodine. Iodine is essential for the proper functioning of the thyroid. If you are exposed to significant radiation, the thyroid from absorbing radioactive iodine (radioiodine), as well as other forms of iodine. The radioactive iodine is the time cleared from the body in the urine.

If you take potassium iodide, it can fill 'vacancies' in the thyroid and prevent the absorption of radioactive iodine. The iodide of potassium is not a cure-all and is more effective if taken within a day of exposure.

Supportive treatment

If you have radiation sickness, you may receive medications or interventions for the treatment of:

  • Bacterial infections.
  • The pain of a headache.
  • Fever.
  • The diarrhea.
  • Nausea and vomiting.
  • The dehydration.
  • Burns.
  • Sores or ulcers.

End-of-life care

A person who has absorbed a very high dose of radiation has little chance of recovery. Depending on the severity of the disease, death may occur within two days or two weeks. People with a lethal dose of radiation you receive medication to control pain, nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea. They also may benefit from psychological or pastoral care.

Symptoms and treatment of disease by Radiation