• Journal of Radiation Industry
• /
• v.5 no.4
• /
• pp.337-345
• /
• 2011

In order to provide an effective preparedness for a nuclear or radiological emergency happening in the domestic or neighborhood countries and to solve the vague fear of the people for the ingestion of radioactive livestock products, the establishment of national guideline level for radionuclides in feed is urgently necessary. This is because it is important to secure the safety and to manage the crisis in the agricultural, fishery and food sector by performing the effective safety control during and after nuclear incident. This study was performed to investigate the report cases of international organizations and foreign countries to set up a domestic control standard for managing radioactive substances that may be contaminated in animal feeds due to the nuclear power plant incident. In addition, an attempt was made to provide a useful reference that can help prepare a domestic control standard, using a coefficient that can consider the transfer into livestock through the intake of radioactive contaminated animal feeds. The standard radioisotopes investigated were confined to radioactive cesium ($^{137+134}Cs$) and iodine ($^{131}I$). Guideline level for the radionuclides was calculated by using the transfer coefficient factor and the maximum daily intake of animal feed provided by IAEA. For example, the maximum daily intake of animal feed was set as $25kg\;d^{-1}$ for dairy cows, $10kg\;d^{-1}$ for beef cattle, $3.0kg\;d^{-1}$ for pigs and $0.15kg\;d^{-1}$ for chickens. The result values for radioactive cesium were calculated as $8,696Bq\;kg^{-1}$, $4,545Bq\;kg^{-1}$, $1,667Bq\;kg^{-1}$ and $2,469Bq\;kg^{-1}$, respectively. The results for radioactive iodine showed the ranges between $741Bq\;kg^{-1}$ and $76,628Bq\;kg^{-1}$. These data can be utilized as a scientific reference for the preparation of a crisis management manual for the emergency control due to nuclear power plant accident in Korea and neighboring country. These results will contribute to establish the safe feed management system at national level as manual for responding the radioactive exposure of agricultural products and animal feeds, which are currently not established.

• The Korean Journal of Nuclear Medicine
• /
• v.24 no.1
• /
• pp.80-86
• /
• 1990

Fifty seven patients with differentiated thyroid carcinoma were performed radioactive iodine-131 whole body scans after administration of diagnostic dose $(2\sim10\;mCi)$ and therapeutic dose $(30\sim150\;mCi)$ within three months. We evaluated the state of radioactive iodine-131 uptakes in whole body scan to detect correct metastasis of thyroid carcinoma. The results are as follows: 1) In 20 of the 57 patients (35%), the therapeutic scan showed the additional uptakes that were not seen in the diagnostic scan. 2) In 9 (64.2%) of the 14 patients who had been received the thyroid ablation theraphy with I-131 previously, new additional lesions were found in the therapeutic scan but only 11 (25%) of the 32 patients who had not been received the thyroid ablation theraphy disclosed new uptake lesions (p < 0.01). 3) The additional uptake lesions of therapeutic scan were significantly more common in the bony metastatic foci (55.7%) than other areas (p < 0.01). In 11 (55%) of 20 patients, additional uptake regions were anterior neck areas (thyroid bed or regional lymph node). We conclude that diagnostic scan with $2\sim5$ mCi I-131 is inadequate in evaluating residual iodine avid tissues of patients with thyroid carcinoma. Also post-theraphy I-131 whole body scan would be important to evaluate the correct staging and prognosis of thyroid carcinoma, and to follow-up patients.

• International journal of thyroidology
• /
• v.11 no.2
• /
• pp.137-142
• /
• 2018

Background and Objectives: Radioactive iodine therapy (RAI) is an important treatment modality of Graves' disease (GD), but there is still not a consensus on the optimal dosage regimen. We studied the treatment success rate of different RAI doses, and examined which clinical markers were useful for determining the optimal RAI dosage for successful therapy in Korean patients. Materials and Methods: We retrospectively studied 123 patients with GD treated with RAI between 2004 and 2014 at Chonnam National University Hwasun Hospital. The responder group was defined as patients who developed hypothyroidism requiring levothyroxine replacement following RAI, regardless of the RAI dosage. Results: A total of 54 patients (43.9%) became hypothyroid after the first dose, and 31 needed two to four additional doses to achieve hypothyroidism. In the responder group as a whole (85 patients), the mean total dose of RAI was $15.5{\pm}7.0mCi$ and the mean thyroid volume (TV) was $35.4{\pm}23.4mL$. When divided into low dose (<15 mCi, n=46) and high dose (${\geq}15mCi$, n=39) responder groups, TV was significantly lower in the low-dose responder group ($25.7{\pm}11.4$ vs. $48.4{\pm}31.3$, p<0.001). The optimal cut-off TV for the low-dose responder group was <32.37 mL (sensitivity 80.9%, specificity 76.7%). Conclusion: TV had significant effects on the outcome of RAI in GD patients. The optimal fixed RAI dose for Korean GD patients with a large goiter (${\geq}33mL$) should be at least 15 mCi to achieve the best outcome.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
• /
• v.54 no.9
• /
• pp.3310-3316
• /
• 2022

Owing to the rising concerns about the safety of nuclear power plants (NPP), it is essential to study the venturi scrubber in detail, which is a key component of the filtered containment venting system (FCVS). FCVS alleviates the pressurein containment byfiltering and venting out the contaminated air. Themain objective of this research was to perform a CFD investigation of different configurations of a circular, non-submerged, self-priming venturi scrubber to estimate and improve the performance in the removal of elemental iodine from the air. For benchmarking, a mass transfer model which is based on two-film theory was selected and validated by experimental data where an alkaline solution was considered as the scrubbing solution. This mass transfer model was modified and implemented on a unique formation of two self-priming venturi scrubbers in series. Euler-Euler method was used for two-phase modeling and the realizable K-ε model was used for capturing the turbulence. The obtained results showed a remarkable improvement in the removal of radioactive iodine from the air using a series combination of venturi scrubbers. The removal efficiency was improved at every single data point.

• The Korean Journal of Nuclear Medicine Technology
• /
• v.22 no.1
• /
• pp.80-83
• /
• 2018

Purpose Assessment of Serum Thyroglobulin (sTg) value in total thyroidectomy patients having an ablation dose of radioactive iodine indicates remaining cancer or metastasis. Especially, sTg in patients on withdrawal thyroxine or thyrogen administration for radioiodine ablation is an important indicator to determine the direction of further treatment and prognosis. Current guidelines suggest measurement of sTg is performed at 72 hours after the last injection of thyrogen. and assumes that sTg reaches maximum serum levels at that time. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the variation of sTg measured after thyrogen administration. Materials and Methods We compared with sTg performed at 24hours(D0) and 72hours(D2) after the last injection of thyrogen. We reviewed D0 and D2 from 276 patients were divided them into three groups according to ablation dose of radioactive iodine, 5mCi(A group), 30~80mCi(B group) and 100~200mCi(C group). We used T-test for comparison between D0 and D2. sTg was measured in serum using immunoradiometric assay (Tg-plus RIA; BRAHMS, Berlin, Germany). Results There is no critical variation between D0 and D2 in A group(n=100)(P=0.32), The case of increase(D2>D0) is 45, no change(D2=D0) is 23, decrease(D2D0 is 91, D2=D0 is 28, D2D0 is 19, D2=D0 is 2. The biggest increase is 143.6 ng/mL from 98.4 to 242. Conclusion There was a significant difference in the group over 30mCi. and the case of D2>D0 is 45%, 58.7%, 90.5% for each group. therefore, D2 increased as the dose of radioactive iodine increased. Furthermore, the most sTg values of D0 and D2 are variation under 2.0 ng/mL, so reproducibility as well as sensitivity of sTg will be important at values below 2ng/mL.

• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
• /
• v.11 no.12
• /
• pp.4935-4944
• /
• 2010

The purpose of this study was to investigate the perceived difficulties during both pre-treatment period and admission period for radioactive iodine therapy (RAIT), the level of information about RAIT provided by medical staffs and the satisfaction of RAIT process in thyroid cancer patients receiving RAIT. Participants were 165 thyroid cancer patients, who had total thyroidectomy and had been offered RAIT. The data were collected using structured questionnaire and open-ended questions and analyzed by descriptive statistics and content analysis. The most frequent perceived difficulties of RAIT was associated with thyroid specific symptoms during both pre-RAIT period and RAIT admission period(38.2% vs 43.0%). The rating of RAIT information provided by medical staffs was evaluated as over moderate level(mean $3.63{\pm}0.80$). The RAIT process satisfaction was investigated as moderate level(mean $6.43{\pm}2.21$). the satisfaction of RAIT was the highest in medical attention and coping procedure (mean $7.64{\pm}2.37$) however it was the lowest in adequacy of RAIT information(mean $5.67{\pm}2.78$). Thus the nursing intervention program for thyroid cancer patient undergoing RAIT should be developed to support needs of thyroid cancer patients related to thyroid specific symptoms and to improve patients' understanding about RAIT procedure so that patients have competence to participate in therapeutic activities efficiently.

• Korean Journal of Head & Neck Oncology
• /
• v.17 no.2
• /
• pp.174-178
• /
• 2001

Background and Objective: Percutaneous ethanol injection therapy has been used in the treatment of the benign thyroid diseases. Although the reported side-effects of the therapy was mild and transient, some side-effects including local or radiating pain are troublesome to the patients. Radioactive iodine-131($Ra-^{131}I$) also has been effectively and safely used for management of the benign thyroid diseases. So we developed the percutaneous intranodular injection therapy of $Ra-^{131}I$ as an alternative of percutaneous ethanol injection therapy. Materials and Methods: From December 1998 to October 1999, we treated 29 outpatients (25 women and 4 men, mean age: $47{\pm}12$ years). Inclusion criteria were follows; age >30 years, cytologically benign, with normal thyroid function, cold nodule on thyroid scintigram, solid or mixed natured nodules in sonographical evaluation. Nodular volume was estimated by sonography according to the ellipsoid formula. $Ra-^{131}I$(0.1mCi/ml) was administered in a single dose injection. Follow-up studies every 3 months consisted of full history, thyroid function test, and sonography. We determined the therapeutic response is effective if the volume reduction of the nodule occurred above 30%. Results: After at least 3 months follow-up, 11 patients showed effective response, 12 patients showed minimal or unchanged response and 6 patients showed progression. Although side-effects such as injection pain, febrile reaction, and hormonal changes were absent, an infectious complication in injection site was developed from 1 case. Conclusion: Although we need a more prolonged follow-up to evaluate the delayed sequelae, we can suggest that percutaneous intranodular injection therapy of $Ra-^{131}I$ may be an attractive non-surgical treatment in selected cases of benign thyroid nodules.

• Journal of Radiation Protection and Research
• /
• v.45 no.3
• /
• pp.101-107
• /
• 2020

Background: An important lesson learned from the Fukushima accident is that the transition to the mid- and long-term phases from the emergency-response phase requires less than a year, which is not very long. It is necessary to know how much radioactive material has been deposited in an urban area to establish mid- and long-term countermeasures after a radioactive accident. Therefore, an urban deposition model that can indicate the site-specific characteristics must be developed. Materials and Methods: In this study, the generalized urban deposition velocity and the subsequent variation in radionuclide contamination were estimated based on the characteristics of the Korean urban environment. Furthermore, the application of the obtained generalized deposition velocity in a hypothetical scenario was investigated. Results and Discussion: The generalized deposition velocities of ¹³⁷Cs, ¹⁰⁶Ru, and ¹³¹I for each residence type were obtained using three-dimensional (3D) modeling. For all residence types, the deposition velocities of ¹³¹I are greater than those of ¹⁰⁶Ru and ¹³⁷Cs. In addition, we calculated the generalized deposition velocities for each residential types. Iodine was the most deposited nuclide during initial deposition. However, the concentration of iodine in urban environment drastically decreases owing to its relatively shorter half-life than ¹⁰⁶Ru and ¹³⁷Cs. Furthermore, the amount of radioactive material deposited in nonresidential areas, especially in parks and schools, is more than that deposited in residential areas. Conclusion: In this study, the generalized urban deposition velocities and the subsequent deposition changes were estimated for the Korean urban environment. The 3D modeling was performed for each type of urban residential area, and the average deposition velocity was obtained and applied to a hypothetical accident. Based on the estimated deposition velocities, the decision-making systems can be improved for responding to radioactive contamination in urban areas. Furthermore, this study can be useful to predict the radiological dose in case of large-scale urban contamination and can support decision-making for long-term measurement after nuclear accident.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
• /
• v.10 no.1
• /
• pp.1-12
• /
• 1978

Concanavalin-A, lectin extracted from Korean native plant “Banha”(Pine-llia Termata) and their conjugation products with tyrosine and 5-iodo-6-aminouracil were labelled by radioactive iodiae-125, and these labelled compounds were subjected to a hemagglutination test in vitro. The labelling procedures were presented with respect to labelling yield and the trends on the conjugation reaction of lectin with various amino acids were discussed. The preliminary results on the hemagglutination tests against cancer tissues were presented and the potential clinical applications of these labelled compounds were discussed.

• Proceedings of the Korean Radioactive Waste Society Conference
• /
• 2004.02a
• /
• pp.238-244
• /
• 2004

The relationship between the leaching and gap inventory of spent fuel has been studied. When a specimen of J44H08 spent PWR fuel with 38 GWD/MTU has been leached in the synthetic granitic groundwater in Ar atmosphere, the released fraction of cesium was increased rapidly up to 0.7% at around 500 days and stayed below 0.8% until 3 years. This 0.7% of cesium might be released from the gap in this fuel. The measurement of gap inventory with C15I08 spent PWR fuel, having 35 GWD/MTU and 0.22% of fission gas release, was also determined near 0.6% for the cesium, which is a similar fraction of cesium released from the leaching experiment with J44H08 fuel. Its gap inventories of strontium and iodine were about 0.03 and less than 0.2% respectively. Respective fractions of cesium and strontium in grain boundary of C15I08 were 0.78, 0.09%.