Outline of NCRP Report No. 180 "Management of exposure to ionizing radiation: radiation protection guidance for the United States"

In the United States of America, the National Council on Radiation Protection and Measurements (NCRP) has prepared NCRP Report No. 180 "Management of exposure to ionizing radiation: radiation protection guidance for the United States (2018)", that updates the basic radiation protection recommendations published as NCRP Report No. 116 in 1993. The recommendations build on previous recommendations of the International Commission on Radiological Protection (ICRP) and NCRP, and are supported and informed by scientific knowledge, ethical principles, and experience. The recommendations are designed to prevent occurrence of tissue reactions, reduce the probability of stochastic effects in humans, and establish a guideline for nonhuman biota focused on population maintenance, while maintaining the benefits to the individual and to the society. Radiation protection principles recommended to address human exposures are justification, optimization of protection, and numeric protection criteria for management of dose to an individual. The key to radiation protection is optimization of protection, which is to be applied in all exposure situations and circumstances. Ethical principles of beneficence, non-maleficence, autonomy and justice are highlighted and useful to clarify interests when making decisions on complex situations. This review provides an outline and summary of the key points of NCRP Report No. 180. (author)