Internal dosimetry : Its evolution and new trends

ABSTRACT

Inhalation and ingestion are the major routes of intakes of radionuclides into the body, however other kinds of contamination can also occur. Dosimetric procedures are also under frequent revision in order to establish derived limits to be used in the practice of control workers and also to provide better interpretations of the results of measurements based on the modeling. A general model has been developed by ICRP for purposes of estimating intakes, body or organ contents and/or excretion rates for most radionuclides by means of describing the distribution and retention of the radionuclide under consideration into the body. This model is formed by three main components a respiratory tract model, a gastrointestinal (GI) tract model and "metabolic" or systemic models describing distribution and retention of radionuclides in organs. This text is concerned on some discussions on the development and trends of metabolic models and dosimetry and their associated parameters, which have been adopted by ICRP to evaluate intakes of radionuclides