Re: P-32 and Skin Burns

[stabin@esper.com (Mike Stabin)]

>
>>P32 has a beta max of 1.71 MeV. Ask your collegaue what kind of 
>>hazard a substantial ingestion or inhalation of P32 could do, 
>>internally? Not a hazard? I think not!
>>
>
>The ingestion ALI for P-32 is 600 uCi.  
>IF someone were to ingest something just shy of that, say, 597 uCi, a
>physician would observe NO adverse effects, although this is a significant
>ingestion.
>

Well, since this ALI is for stochastic effects, it supposedly corresponds to
an effective whole body dose of 50 mSv, so intake of several times an ALI
should not result in any immediately observable effects.  The same point
would hold even if it were a NALI (nonstochastic ALI).  We remember the
recent NIH and MIT incidents, in which about an ALI was taken in, and here
one has a reportable incident, but not one where observable effects would be
expected.  Sometimes, folks have reported the false NVD syndrome (at least
the NV part) induced by panic due to perceived danger from "large" intakes.

On the skin, however, as the original poster pointed out, under the right
conditions, induction of erythema is conceivable.

Mike Stabin
Radiation Internal Dose
  Information Center
Oak Ridge, TN