Objective To understand the health status of radiologists with different specialties after long-term low-dose radiation exposure, and to provide evidence for their health protection.
Methods From January 2006 through December 2010, a total of 389 radiologists from 53 medical institutions in Wuxi were recruited and divided into intervention, radiological technology, radiodiagnosis, and radiation therapy groups. Their health examination results were retrospectively analyzed. A comparative study were performed to compare and determine annual occupational external radiation doses, positive rates of abnormal signs and symptoms, and abnormal rates in blood routine test among different groups. A correlation analysis was applied between the annual occupational external exposure doses and the abnormal rates.
Results Over the 5 years studied, the annual external radiation doses of the subjects were less than the annual dose equivalent limit (20 mSv), and the individual doses of different groups were in a descending order as intervention group, radiological technology group, radiodiagnosis group, and radiation therapy group. The positive rates of abnormal symptoms and signs and the abnormal rates in blood routine test were different among different groups, in which the intervention group were significantly higher than other groups (P<0.05). Those rates of different groups were slightly correlated with their annual individual doses.
Conclusion Individual radiation doses vary with radiologists of different specialties. The positive rates of abnormal symptoms and signs are not only associated with the increment of cumulative doses, but also with individual differences and physiological factors. The abnormal symptoms and signs and the abnormal peripheral blood routine of the intervention group are significantly more than those of other professions. Enhanced radiation protection should be provided based on specific working conditions to ensure the health of radiologists with long-term exposure to low-dose ionizing radiation.
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