A study on workers from the Mayak Production Association, a nuclear facility that produced plutonium for the Soviet Union, found that the main detrimental health effects of radiation exposure happen more than thirty years after the exposure. At the facility, workers were exposed to low and medium doses at low dose rates. Gender differences in mortality from ischemic heart disease in the Mayak workers were also discovered, with males suffering higher risk than females.
Abstract
We present an updated analysis of incidence and mortality from atherosclerotic induced ischemic heart diseases in the cohort of workers at the Mayak Production Association (PA). This cohort constitutes one of the most important sources for the assessment of radiation risk. It is exceptional because it comprises information on several other risk factors. While most of the workers have been exposed to external gamma radiation, a large proportion has additionally been exposed to internal radiation from inhaled plutonium. Compared to a previous study by Azizova et al. 2012, the updated dosimetry system MWDS-2008 has been applied and methods of analysis have been revised. We extend the analysis of the significant incidence risk and observe that main detrimental effects of external radiation exposure occur after more than about 30 years. For mortality, significant risk was found in males with an excess relative risk per dose of 0.09 (95% CI: 0.02; 0.16) Gy-1 while risk was insignificant for females. With respect to internal radiation exposure no association to risk could be established.
Figure 1. Crude IHD incidence rates of Mayak workers and 95% confidence intervals for different calendar years.
Document Credits
Cristoforo Simonetto1*, Tamara V. Azizova2, Evgenia S. Grigoryeva2, Jan C. Kaiser1, Helmut Schöllnberger1, Markus Eidemüller1
1 Helmholtz Zentrum München, Department of Radiation Sciences, Neuherberg, Germany
2 Southern Urals Biophysics Institute (SUBI), Ozyorsk, Chelyabinsk Region, Russia