Is lead dust within nuclear medicine departments a hazard to pediatric patients?

Because of the penetrating ability of the radiation used in nuclear medicine, metallic lead is widely used as radiation shielding. However, this shielding may present an insidious health hazard because of the dust that is readily removed from the surfaces of lead objects. The lead dust may become airborne, contaminate floors and other nearby surfaces, and be inadvertently inhaled or ingested by patients. We determined if the quantity of lead dust encountered within nuclear medicine departments exceeded Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) standards.

For lead dust quantification, professional lead test kits were used to sample fifteen 1-ft(2) sections of different surfaces within the department. Four samples were collected once per week from each site. The samples were then submitted to a National Lead Laboratory-accredited program for a total lead measurement. Lead contamination (mug/ft(2)) for each of the 60 samples was compared with the EPA standards for lead dust.

Lead contamination was present at 6 of the 15 sites, and of 60 samples, 18 exceeded the EPA standard of 50 mug/ft(2).

Lead contamination is present within nuclear medicine departments, and corrective measures should be considered when dealing with pediatric patients. A larger series needs to be conducted to confirm these findings.