The reactor accident at Chernobyl: a nuclear medicine practitioner's perspective

The radiation incident at Chernobyl, USSR, on April 26, 1986 was first detected in Sweden on April 29, when increased radioactivity was observed at a nuclear facility in that country. Subsequently, higher levels of radioactivity were observed in most of Eastern Europe and then in Western Europe. Increased radioactivity was eventually noted in the United States beginning about May 5. The three-day interval between the incident and its discovery outside the USSR caused great apprehension. This chain of events indicates the very important role for the nuclear medicine physician, the medical physicist and their colleagues. It is likely that this medical specialty area is staffed by personnel who are best qualified to interpret these findings and to determine the necessary course of action both for patients and the general public. The nuclear medicine specialist can provide valuable input in estimating the radiation dose impact resulting from such an incident. This estimate may be accomplished either by combining measured activity levels with the physiological and physical factors involved; or by actual in vivo counting and quantitation of radioactivity in individuals exposed to radionuclides. From the measured activities in air, water and food, and assumed intakes for various age groups, doses can be estimated both for inhalation and ingestion of radionuclides. In vivo measurements of radionuclides can be performed with conventional instrumentation used routinely in nuclear medicine laboratories.