Adaptation of the ICRP models for the Techa River populations to estimate in utero and postnatal haemopoietic tissue doses from ingested strontium isotopes

Full text: Reliable estimation of tissue doses for exposed individuals is very important in epidemiological studies. Long-term cohort studies of the Techa River populations exposed in the early 1950s due to releases of liquid radioactive wastes from the Mayak plutonium production facility (Southern Urals, Russia) are unique in allowing the quantification of risks from low-level chronic exposure of the general population and providing information on risks for persons exposed in utero. Strontium isotopes were the most important contributors to haemopoietic tissue doses for people living in the riverside settlements. Large-scale monitoring of the exposed population has provided a comprehensive database, including post mortem and in vivo measurements of 90Sr in bones and whole body, for use in the estimation of doses. The International Commission on Radiological Protection (ICRP) has published biokinetic and dosimetric models for the calculation of doses to members of the public, including doses from in utero exposures and from intakes with breast milk. However, the ICRP models as applied to Sr required modification to provide best estimates of doses to Techa River residents. Adaptations were made to the ICRP model for Sr in children and adults to take account of population-specific features relating to bone mineral turnover and to model age and gender differences in strontium retention. Refinements in the ICRP model for Sr uptake and retention in the fetus were made to improve the treatment of discrimination against Sr, relative to Ca, in transfer from maternal to foetal blood and to take account of population-specific data on the calcium content of the maternal and fetal skeleton. Modification of the ICRP model for Sr transfer in breast-milk included adaptations relating to changes in maternal mineral metabolism during lactation and consideration of population-specific features of breast feeding in the rural population. The improved models were successfully validated using data on 90Sr in humans compiled at the Urals Research Center for Radiation Medicine. The models will be used to provide best estimates of doses resulting from ingestion of Sr isotopes as a result of the Techa River contamination, an essential prerequisite to analyses of health risks from protracted low-level exposure of this population. (author)