REDUCED LUNG FUNCTION IN CHILDREN ASSOCIATED WITH 137CESIUM BODY BURDEN

Wednesday, 20 August 2014
Exhibit hall (Dena'ina Center)
Erik R Svendsen, PhD , Tulane University, New Orleans, LA
Ighor E Kolpakov, MD , Acadamy of Medical Sciences of Ukraine, Kiev, Ukraine
Yevgenia I Stepanova, MD , National Research Center for Radiation Medicine, Kiev, Ukraine
Wilfried J Karmaus, MD , University of Memphis School of Public Health, Memphis, TN
Vitaliy Y Vdovenko, MD , Acadamy of Medical Sciences of Ukraine, Kiev, Ukraine
Daria M McMahon, MD , University of South Carolina, Arnold School of Public Health, Columbia, SC
Benjamin Jelin, MPH , Tulane University, New Orleans, LA
Lawrence C Mohr, MD , Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC
INTRODUCTION:  We previously reported that obstructive and restrictive lung function findings were associated with radioactive 137Cesium (Cs) soil contamination from the Chernobyl disaster in a pediatric cohort residing in the Narodichesky district of Ukraine from 1993-98. To determine whether these associations persist, we repeated the study and refined the exposure by measuring individual radiation concentration with a whole body counter.

METHODS:  Basic and post-bronchodilator spirometry measurements were made for 517 children age 8-17 years living within this study cohort area during 2008-2010. A gamma-spectrometer equipped with a collimator was used for the measurement of whole-body radiation, and adjusted for weight. General linear and logistic regression models were used to estimate the association between spirometry measures and the weight-adjusted 137Cs whole-body burden (Bq/kg) while controlling for potential confounders.

RESULTS:  The geometric median weight-adjusted radiation concentration was 65.96 Bq/kg (14.98, 240.9 95%CI), equivalent to a geometric mean internal dose estimate of 0.165 (0.037, 0.602 95%CI) mSv/yr. Decrements in FEV1/FVC, and an increased odds of airway responsiveness, FEV1<80%, FEV1/FVC<80%, and FVC<80% were significantly associated with a log increase in weight adjusted 137Cs whole-body burden after adjusting for potential confounders.

CONCLUSIONS:  Our previous study showing an association between soil 137Cs exposure and reduced lung function was corroborated herein with individual 137Cs whole-body burden and associated internal dose data. Children in a region just outside of the closed Chernobyl contamination zone continued to have respiratory health deficits associated with 137Cs exposure as recently as 2010.

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