About radiation sickness

What is radiation sickness?

Radiation sickness is damage to your body caused by a large dose of radiation often received over a short period of time (acute). The amount of radiation absorbed by the body — the absorbed dose — determines how sick you'll be.

Radiation sickness is also called acute radiation sickness, acute radiation syndrome or radiation poisoning. Common exposures to low-dose radiation, such as X-ray or CT examinations, don't cause radiation sickness.

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

What are the symptoms for radiation sickness?

Dizziness symptom was found in the radiation sickness condition

The severity of signs and symptoms of radiation sickness depends on how much radiation you've absorbed. How much you absorb depends on the strength of the radiated energy and the distance between you and the source of radiation.

Signs and symptoms also are affected by the type of exposure — such as total or partial body and whether contamination is internal or external — and how sensitive to radiation the affected tissue is. For instance, the gastrointestinal system and bone marrow are highly sensitive to radiation.

Absorbed dose and duration of exposure

The absorbed dose of radiation is measured in a unit called a gray (Gy). Diagnostic tests that use radiation, such as an X-ray, result in a small dose of radiation — typically well below 0.1 Gy — focused on a few organs or small amount of tissue.

Signs and symptoms of radiation sickness usually appear when the entire body receives an absorbed dose of at least 1 Gy. Doses greater than 10 Gy to the whole body are generally not treatable and usually lead to death within two days to two weeks, depending on the dose and duration of the exposure.

Initial signs and symptoms

The initial signs and symptoms of treatable radiation sickness are usually Nausea and vomiting. The amount of time between exposure and when these symptoms develop is an indicator of how much radiation a person has absorbed.

After the first round of signs and symptoms, a person with radiation sickness may have a brief period with no apparent illness, followed by the onset of new, more-serious symptoms.

In general, the greater your radiation exposure, the more rapid and more severe your symptoms will be.

Signs and symptoms of radiation sickness
  Mild exposure
(1-2 Gy)
Moderate exposure
(2-6 Gy)
Severe exposure
(6-9 Gy)
Very severe exposure
(10 Gy or higher)
Based on Radiation exposure and contamination. Merck Manual Professional Edition.
Nausea and vomiting Within 6 hours Within 2 hours Within 1 hour Within 10 minutes
Diarrhea -- Within 8 hours Within 3 hours Within 1 hour
Headache -- Within 24 hours Within 4 hours Within 2 hours
Fever -- Within 3 hours Within 1 hour Within 1 hour
Dizziness and disorientation -- -- Within 1 week Immediate
Weakness, fatigue Within 4 weeks Within 1-4 weeks Within 1 week Immediate
Hair loss, bloody vomit and stools, infections, poor wound healing, low blood pressure -- Within 1-4 weeks Within 1 week Immediate

When to see a doctor

An accident or attack that causes radiation sickness would no doubt cause a lot of attention and public concern. If such an event occurs, monitor radio, television or online reports to learn about emergency instructions for your area.

If you know you've been overexposed to radiation, seek emergency medical care.

What are the causes for radiation sickness?

Radiation is the energy released from atoms as either a wave or a tiny particle of matter. Radiation sickness is caused by exposure to a high dose of radiation, such as a high dose of radiation received during an industrial accident. Common exposures to low-dose radiation, such as X-ray exams, don't cause radiation sickness.

Sources of high-dose radiation

Possible sources of high-dose radiation include the following:

  • An accident at a nuclear industrial facility
  • An attack on a nuclear industrial facility
  • Detonation of a small radioactive device
  • Detonation of a conventional explosive device that disperses radioactive material (dirty bomb)
  • Detonation of a standard nuclear weapon

Radiation sickness occurs when high-energy radiation damages or destroys certain cells in your body. Regions of the body most vulnerable to high-energy radiation are cells in the lining of your intestinal tract, including your stomach, and the blood cell-producing cells of bone marrow.

What are the treatments for radiation sickness?

The treatment goals for radiation sickness are to prevent further radioactive contamination; treat life-threatening injuries, such as from burns and trauma; reduce symptoms; and manage pain.

Decontamination

Decontamination is the removal of as much external radioactive particles as possible. Removing clothing and shoes eliminates about 90 percent of external contamination. Gently washing with water and soap removes additional radiation particles from the skin.

Decontamination prevents further distribution of radioactive materials and lowers the risk of internal contamination from inhalation, ingestion or open wounds.

Treatment for damaged bone marrow

A protein called granulocyte colony-stimulating factor, which promotes the growth of white blood cells, may counter the effect of radiation sickness on bone marrow. Treatment with this protein-based medication, which includes filgrastim (Neupogen), sargramostim (Leukine) and pegfilgrastim (Neulasta), may increase white blood cell production and help prevent subsequent infections.

If you have severe damage to bone marrow, you may also receive transfusions of red blood cells or blood platelets.

Treatment for internal contamination

Some treatments may reduce damage to internal organs caused by radioactive particles. Medical personnel would use these treatments only if you've been exposed to a specific type of radiation. These treatments include the following:

  • Potassium iodide (Thyroshield, Iosat). This is a nonradioactive form of iodine.

    Because iodine is essential for proper thyroid function, the thyroid becomes a "destination" for iodine in the body. If you have internal contamination with radioactive iodine (radioiodine), your thyroid will absorb radioiodine just as it would other forms of iodine. Treatment with potassium iodide may fill "vacancies" in the thyroid and prevent absorption of radioiodine. The radioiodine is eventually cleared from the body in urine.

    Potassium iodide isn't a cure-all and is most effective if taken within a day of exposure.

  • Prussian blue (Radiogardase). This type of dye binds to particles of radioactive elements known as cesium and thallium. The radioactive particles are then excreted in feces. This treatment speeds up the elimination of the radioactive particles and reduces the amount of radiation cells may absorb.
  • Diethylenetriamine pentaacetic acid (DTPA). This substance binds to metals. DTPA binds to particles of the radioactive elements plutonium, americium and curium. The radioactive particles pass out of the body in urine, thereby reducing the amount of radiation absorbed.

Supportive treatment

If you have radiation sickness, you may receive additional medications or interventions to treat:

  • Bacterial infections
  • Headache
  • Fever
  • Diarrhea
  • Nausea and vomiting
  • Dehydration
  • Burns

End-of-life care

A person who has absorbed large doses of radiation (10 Gy or greater) has little chance of recovery. Depending on the severity of illness, death can occur within two days or two weeks. People with a lethal radiation dose will receive medications to control pain, nausea, vomiting and diarrhea. They may also benefit from psychological or pastoral care.

Is there a cure/medications for radiation sickness?

Radiation sickness doesn’t have any cure, but a few medications and therapy can extract some radiation from the body. People who are exposed to radiation should seek medical attention as soon as possible.

The treatments for Radiation sickness are as follows:

  • DTPA (diethylenetriamine penaacetic acid): It binds to the radioactive elements present in the body, such as americium, plutonium, and curium. Furthermore, these combined particles move out of the body in the form of urine and result in minimum radioactive substance in the body.
  • Potassium iodine: it is a nonreactive form of iodine that absorbs the reactive iodine and other reactive material. These absorbent materials pass out from the body in the form of urine. However, it is not a cure, but it can reduce the effects of radiation.
  • Decontamination: It includes removing external radioactive particles. Removing shoes and clothes eliminates about 90% of the radiation, and washing the face and hands removes external contamination from the body.
  • Prussian blue (Radiogardase): This is a type of dye that binds to particles of radioactive elements known as cesium and thallium, which are then excreted in feces. This treatment speeds up the elimination of the radioactive particles and reduces the number of radiation cells may absorb.
  • Supportive treatment: If you have radiation sickness, you may receive additional medications or interventions to treat conditions like bacterial infections, headache, fever, diarrhea, nausea and vomiting, dehydration, burns and sores or ulcers.


Symptoms
Nausea and vomiting,Diarrhea,Headache,Fever,Dizziness and disorientation,Weakness and fatigue,Hair loss,Bloody vomit and stools from internal bleeding
Conditions
Acute radiation syndrome,Radiation poisoning
Drugs
Diethylenetriamine pentaacetic acid (DTPA),Potassium iodine

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