• External Contamination
  • Full Body
  • Partial Body
  • Wound Contamination with Radioactive Shrapnel
• Internal Contamination
  • Via Respiratory Tract
  • Via Digestive Tract
  • Via Radioactive Dust in Open Wounds
• Incorporation

Patient Management:

Contamination
• Contamination results when a radioisotope as gas, liquid, or solid is released into the environment and then ingested, inhaled, or deposited on the body surface.
• How to diagnose:
  • Scan with radiation detection meter
  • Swab each nostril separately to help estimate level of internal (lung) contamination
  • Obtain spot and/or 24 hour urine/stool sample for radioactivity
  • Consider total body radiation survey with modified hospital nuclear medicine equipment
• External Contamination
  • External contamination results when radioactive material is deposited on skin, hair, eyes, or other external structures, much like mud or dust.
  • External contamination stops when the material is removed by shedding contaminated clothes and/or completely washing off the contamination.