Personnel doses on the handling of 99Tc(sup)m at hospitals

The absorbed whole-body dose to the personnel working full time with nuclear medicine investigations in vivo is found to be 1-4 m Gy/a, as measured on the film badge and corresponding to a dose equivalent of 0.7 to 2.8 m Sv. The patient is contributing 1 to 2 m Gy. The absorbed dose to the fingers of the personnel easily exceeds 500 m Sv/a emanating from the syringes and bottles. The injection of patients renders the highest exposures. If rubber gloves were not used the contamination from 1 kBq 99Tc(sub)m will be 0.5 Gy/h-1 to the skin. Latex rubber gloves will provide sufficient protection when used less than for 30 minutes. (G.B.)