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ST 4.2 –
Emergencias radiológicas y nucleares
OVERVIEW OF BRAZILIAN INDUSTRIAL RADIOLOGICAL ACCIDENTS
WITH CUTANEOUS RADIATION SYNDROME
Lima, Camila Moreira Araujo de*; Da Silva, Francisco Cesar Augusto
Instituto de Radioproteção e Dosimetria (CNEN). Brazil.
* Responsible author, email: c.araujo@maximindustrial.com.br
It is well documented that Industrial Radiography is related to radiological accidents, which
make this industrial practice the highest potential risk for human health. Considering all cases
cited by IAEA and UNSCEAR, the sum is 80 radiological accidents involving 120 radiation
workers, 110 members of the public and 12 deaths. In the last 30 years, it is recorded that 10
severe radiological accidents in industrial radiography happened in Latin America, including the
Brazilian events. IAEA published reports of 4 of them: Peru (1999 and 2012), Bolivia (2002),
Chile (2005). In these events only members of the public were involved. Brazilian data include 6
serious radiological accidents affecting 8 radiation workers and 19 members of the public,
resulting in the development of the Cutaneous Radiation Syndrome - CRS – (also called by
some as “local radiation injury” or “radiation burn”) in hands and fingers. Four accidents
happened with 192Ir radioactive source used in mobile industrial gamma devices (1985 (2
events), 1988, 1997, 1998) and the last one was with 60Co radioactive source (2002). Nineteen
members of the public were involved in two events (1985) and 8 radiographers were involved in
4 events (1988, 1997, 1998 and 2000). All of them suffered severe lesions in hands and fingers.
This paper presents the summaries of each event, the main causes and consequences for the
persons involved, the radiation doses calculated and the mainly lessons learned.