No. It will not monitor an exposure to diagnostic X-ray (e.g., chest or dental) or airport x-ray machines. They are very low (e.g., ~0.5 mSv/exposure) dose while RADTriage monitors dose higher than 10-50 mSv.

No. It is not a radiation detector. It is a high dose dosimeter and it will not detect a dirty bomb or a radioactive material.

The answer is “No”. Those who use and required to use these and similar high sensitivity dosimeters must continue using them. RADTriage is not a substitute for any high sensitivity dosimeters. RADTriage is an acute dose, casualty dosimeter for monitoring dose higher than 10 – 50 mSv. It can be used along with other dosimeters such as TLD.

No

No

No

First make sure that you are not using an expired badge and the color development is not due to prolonged exposure to high temperatures and/or UV/sunlight (false positive). If there are no false positive, then estimate the dose, immediately report to department/agency/organization issuing the dosimeter and seek medical help immediately, especially if the dose is higher than 250 mSv. Inform an appropriate authority.

We recommend to use RADTriage if you are potentially at risk of getting a high dose (higher than 10 mSv) of ionizing radiation.

Keep the dosimeter with you, when you are at a risk of being expose to radiation. Protect the sensor from prolonged (more than a few days) exposure to direct sunlight. The shelf life/service life can be extended to 5-10 years if you keep it in a freezer.

If the threat of being exposed to radiation is high you should read often, e.g., every day or
more frequently.

No. Alpha particles emitted by radon and its daughters will be absorbed by the protective cover and will not reach the sensor.

No. RADTriage is a disposable dosimeter and user or issuing organization is responsible for keeping record of exposure.

Report it to the department/agency/organization issuing the dosimeter. To the best of our knowledge, there is no one national or international phone number or organization to report individual exposure. However, if you are an individual user of the dosimeter, and if you are
exposed to high dose of radiation, contact the followings: City police, or hazardous materials units, State police and/or emergency response divisions, or National Guard civil support teams.

Commonly used definition of dose is the amount of energy deposited in a unit of tissue or material. This measurement of dose can be used to represent the average dose to an organism, organ, tissue or even a cell. Another definition is the energy deposited at a point source and is useful in determining the dose distribution during cancer therapy.

Any exposure to radiation is harmful. Higher the dose, higher is the chance of getting cancer. On average, one person out of 1,000 will die due to induced cancer if they receive 250 mSv.

No. There is no over-the-counter medicine for treating radiation exposures.

No. Potassium iodide tablets will help only if you are exposed to radioactive iodide which is usually released from nuclear detonation or a nuclear reactor accident. Use of diethylenetriaminepentaacetic acid (DTPA) and Prussian blue is reported for removing radioactive materials from the body but such therapy must be done by expert physicians only.

The Health Physics Society has issued a position statement that addresses this issue. The statement does not claim that “there are no observable health effects below 10 rem (100 mSv) but that health risks, if they exist below 10 rem, are too small to be observed. The facts in the matter of radiation effects at low doses are very simple: no one knows whether there is any risk or not. All we can say now is that no one has detected any statistically significant effect at doses below about 100 mSv (10 rem)”. (1 rem is almost equivalent to 1 rad or 10 mSv for tissue equivalent materials).

Some epidemiological studies suggest an increased risk of cancer in this dose range. However, the data suggest that risks in the 150-200 mSv dose range are very small and difficult to measure. Above 100 mSv there appears to be a significant risk of thyroid cancer due to radioactive iodine exposure in children 15 years of age and younger.

There is no unique number; the best guess is 20,000-50,000 mSv and even then the death will not be instant as in breathing cyanide or carbon monoxide.

It is well established that high dose ionizing radiation can cause cancer. Effect/symptoms of a high dose is shown below.(Adapted from IOM/NRC, 1999a)

• No easily detectable clinical effect in humans.
• However, at about 15 rads there could be temporary sterility (Testis).

25 to 100 rads:

• Slight short-term reduction in blood cells.
• Disabling sickness not common.

100 to 200 rads: 

• Nausea and fatigue.
• Vomiting if dose is greater than 125 rads.
• Longer-term reduction in number of some types of blood cells.

200 to 300 rads:

• Nausea and vomiting on the first day of exposure.
• Up to a two-week latent period followed by appetite loss, general malaise, sore throat, pallor, diarrhea, and moderate emaciation.
•  Recovery in about three months unless complicated by infection or injury.

300 to 600 rads: 

• Nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea in first few hours
• Up to a one-week latent period followed by loss of appetite, fever, and general malaise in the second week.
• Followed by bleeding, inflammation of mouth and throat, diarrhea, and emaciation.
• Some deaths in two to six weeks
• Eventual death for 50% if exposure is above 450 rems.
• Others recover in about six months.

Over 600 rads: 

• Nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea in the first few hours.
• Followed by rapid emaciation and death in 2nd week.
• Eventual death of nearly 100%.

It mainly depends on the dose. The risk for radiation exposure has been very widely studied. The general consensus of opinion for the induction of cancer by ionizing radiation is 10% increase in cancer rate/Sv when the dose is given over a short time with a decrease to 5% when the dose is protracted over an extended time period. (one Sv is equal to 1000 mSv and one mSv is equal to 100 mRem.) Therefore a 10% increase in cancer is related to a dose of 100,000 mrem with 5% if the dose is protracted over a longer period of time. At doses near background levels 370 mrem/year the risk from radiation induced cancer is 5%/Sv divided by 1000 Sv/mSv and divided again by 100 mSv/mrem, times the amount of radiation exposure.

A dirty bomb is not a nuclear bomb. It is a radiological dispersion device (RDD), a conventional explosive packed with radioactive material. When such a bomb is exploded, it will disperse a radioactive material.

Most probably not. If you are very close to the blast, you could die or injured from the explosion, falling objects or fire. There is very little chance for you dieing from the radiation exposure from a “dirty bomb”. If you are very close to the bomb and are not killed by the blast then there is the potential for radiation sickness. If you are not close to the bomb you will not receive a large radiation dose or get sick and can expected to live for a normal number of years.

If you are contaminated with radioactive materials, radiation emitted by the radioactive materials, can be detected with detectors, such as a simple Geiger counter. If physical measurements suggest that you have been exposed, there are predictable changes in your body that can be quickly measured. The number of blood cells, the frequency of chromosome aberrations in the blood cells and the amount of radioactive material in your urine, are examples of biomarkers that can quickly indicate if your exposure can be life threatening.

If you are close to a dirty bomb detonation, the first thing to do is to get away from it as far and as fast as possible. If you are exposed and contaminated with radioactive materials, make sure that you change your clothes and take a shower. Taking a shower will remove the radioactive material from your skin. It would be wise to have a radiation test to determine if you have ingested or inhaled radioactive materials.

References:
National Council on Radiation Protection and Measurements. Oct. 2001 Management of terrorist events involving radioactive material, NCRP Report No. 138, Bethesda, Maryland.

Medical Management of Radiological Casualties, Handbook, Military Medical Operations, Armed Forces Radiobiology Research Institute, Bethesda, Maryland 20889-5603.

NCRP National Council on Radiation Protection and Measurements, 1987, Recommendations on limits
for exposure to ionizing radiation. NCRP Report No. 91 (Bethesda, National Council on Radiation
Protection and Measurements).

NCRP National Council on Radiation Protection and Measurements, Risk estimates for radiation
protection. NCRP Report No. 115. Issued December 31, 1993. Bethesda, Maryland. National Council on Radiation Protection and Measurements.

NCRP National Council on Radiation Protection and Measurements, 1993, Limitation of exposure to
ionizing radiation. NCRP Report No. 116. National Council on Radiation Protection and Measurements, Besthesda, Maryland.