Radiation Safety and Accidental Radiation Exposures in Nuclear Medicine

Marengo, Mario; Martin, C J; Rubow, Sietske; Séra, Teréz; Amador, Zayda; Torres, Leonel

doi:10.1053/j.semnuclmed.2021.11.006

Cited by 21 publications

(14 citation statements)

References 124 publications

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“…Anyone using unsealed radioactive materials should wear personal protective equipment (PPE) such as protective clothes, gloves, and glasses. Additionally, such materials should be handled in radiochemical fume hoods to avoid their intake [ 1 , 2 ]. However, we note that the required protection measures will depend on the type of radionuclide.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Protection from contamination by 211At, an enigmatic but promising alpha-particle-emitting radionuclide

et al. 2022

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Purpose 211At, a promising alpha-particle-emitting radionuclide, can easily volatilize and contaminate the environment. To safely manage this unique alpha-particle-emitting radionuclide, we investigated the permeability of four types of plastic films and two types of rubber gloves against 211At and identified suitable materials that prevent contamination by 211At. Methods Four types of plastic films, polyethylene, polyvinylidene chloride, polyvinyl chloride, and a laminated film, and two types of rubber gloves, latex and nitrile, were examined. Small pieces of filter paper were covered with these materials, and a drop containing 100 kBq of 211At was placed on them. The radioactivity of the pieces of filter paper under the materials was evaluated by measuring counts using a gamma counter and obtaining autoradiograms 3.5 h later. These experiments were also performed using 225Ac, 125I, 111In, 201Tl, and 99mTc. Results 211At solution easily penetrated polyethylene, polyvinyl chloride, and latex rubber. Similar results were obtained for 125I, while other radionuclides did not penetrate films or gloves. These results suggest that halogenic radionuclides under anionic conditions are likely to penetrate plastic films and rubber gloves. Conclusion Our evaluation revealed that, when 211At solution is used, the protection by polyvinylidene chloride, a laminated film, or nitrile rubber would be more effective than that by polyethylene, polyvinyl chloride, or latex rubber.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Protection from contamination by 211At, an enigmatic but promising alpha-particle-emitting radionuclide

et al. 2022

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“…Nuclear medicine incidents may lead to higher radiation exposures of staff compared to routine procedures. These unintended events may include: handling of unsealed radionuclides or unshielded vials and syringes; malfunctioning of administration devices, with potential spillage of radioactive material; contamination from patient’s body fluids, such as where the patient vomits after swallowing a capsule of radio-iodine, or during the treatment of incontinent patients where leakage from a split urine bag may occur ( 23 , 24 ) . It is clear from this list that incidents in therapy nuclear medicine shielded rooms are likely to happen during the delivery of therapy or patient assistance.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

A real-time system to report abnormal events involving staff in a nuclear medicine therapy unit

Stendardo

Nuccetelli

Grande

et al. 2023

Radiation Protection Dosimetry

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A system for internal and voluntary reporting of abnormal events in a Nuclear Medicine Therapy Unit is described. This system is based on the Internet of Things and is composed of an application for mobile devices and a wireless network of detectors. The application is addressed to healthcare professionals and is intended to be a user-friendly tool to make the reporting procedure little laborious. The network of detectors allows for a real-time measurement of the dose distribution in the patient’s room. The staff was involved in all stages, from the design of the dosimetry system and mobile application up to their final testing. Face-to-face interviews were carried out with 24 operators in different roles in the Unit (radiation protection experts, physicians, physicists, nuclear medicine technicians and nurses). The preliminary results of the interviews and the current state of development of the application and the detection network will be described.

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“…Firstly, the scope of the audit in development was defined on the basis of several guidelines in NM and radiopharmacy [ 8 , 12 , 13 ]. Then, the evaluation grid to be used during the audit (see Table S1 ) was elaborated by a working group composed of a quality officer, two radiopharmacists, a health executive NMT, a nuclear physician, and a medical physicist.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The most common errors encountered during the radiopharmaceutical injection phase are closely related to the five rights of medication administration [ 5 ]. They may involve patient identity mistakes, failure to check the RP and/or the radioactive dose in the syringe at the time of injection [ 6 ], lack of asepsis during injection [ 7 ], or lack of radiation protection that may overexpose the patient and/or the operator [ 8 ]. It is therefore important to ensure the safety of the RPs injection step and to maximize the quality of patient care through the training and qualification of the healthcare staff (in this case, nuclear medicine technologists (NMTs)).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Development and Implementation of a Professional Practices Evaluation during Radiopharmaceuticals Administration

et al. 2022

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Securing both the patient and radiopharmaceuticals (RPs) circuit is an essential concern in nuclear medicine (NM). These circuits converge at the RP administration phase, a key step in patient management in NM. In a continuous quality improvement approach, we developed and implemented an evaluation of professional practices (EPPs) methodology focused on RPs injection to identify and correct deviations from good practices. The nuclear medicine technologists (NMTs) of a single center were evaluated. A specific audit grid was designed for this purpose, covering 4 main themes. Following the audit campaign, an improvement action plan was set up to address the non-conformities observed. Nine NMTs were audited on 4 RPs injections each. The mean total score was 93.36% with, on average, 7.01% and 3.00% of unmet and partially met criteria, respectively. In view of the non-compliance rates of hygiene and radiation protection items, theoretical reviews of these themes were included in the improvement action plan. As a part of the quality assurance system of a healthcare unit, EPPs are useful for identifying and correcting practice deviations at an early stage. They should be regularly repeated and combined with rigorous training and qualification of operators involved in RPs injection.

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Radiation Safety and Accidental Radiation Exposures in Nuclear Medicine

Cited by 21 publications

References 124 publications

Protection from contamination by 211At, an enigmatic but promising alpha-particle-emitting radionuclide

Protection from contamination by 211At, an enigmatic but promising alpha-particle-emitting radionuclide

A real-time system to report abnormal events involving staff in a nuclear medicine therapy unit

Development and Implementation of a Professional Practices Evaluation during Radiopharmaceuticals Administration

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