Risk of mortality from circulatory diseases in Mayak workers cohort following occupational radiation exposure

• Published in: Journal of radiological protection Vol. 35; no. 3; pp. 517 - 538
• Main Authors: Azizova, T V, Grigorieva, E S, Hunter, N, Pikulina, M V, Moseeva, M B
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England IOP Publishing 01.09.2015
• Subjects: Adult; Aged; alpha-radiation; Cardiovascular Diseases - mortality; Cause of Death; circulatory diseases; Dose-Response Relationship, Radiation; Female; Follow-Up Studies; Gamma Rays; Humans; Male; Mayak PA; Middle Aged; mortality; Nuclear Reactors; Occupational Diseases - mortality; occupational exposure; Occupational Exposure - adverse effects; Plutonium; Radiation Dosage; Radiation Exposure - adverse effects; Radiation Monitoring; Risk; Russia - epidemiology; Russia; INW, Japan
• ISSN: 0952-4746; 1361-6498
• DOI: 10.1088/0952-4746/35/3/517

Mortality from circulatory diseases (CD) (ICD-9 codes 390-459) was studied in an extended Mayak worker cohort, which included 22 377 workers first employed at the Mayak Production Association in 1948-1982 and followed up to the end of 2008. The enlarged cohort and extended follow-up as compared to the previous analyses provided an increased number of deaths from CD and improved statistical power of this mortality study. The analyses were based on dose estimates provided by a new Mayak Worker Dosimetry System 2008 (MWDS-2008). For the first time in the study of non-cancer effects in this cohort quantitative smoking data (smoking index) were taken into account. A significant increasing trend for CD mortality with increasing dose from external gamma-rays was found after having adjusted for non-radiation factors; the excess relative risk per unit dose (ERR/Gy) was 0.05 (95% confidence interval (CI):  >0, 0.11). Inclusion of an additional adjustment for dose from internal alpha-radiation to the liver resulted in a two-fold increase of ERR/Gy = 0.10 (95% CI: 0.02, 0.21). A significant increasing trend in CD mortality with increasing dose from internal alpha-radiation to the liver was observed (ERR/Gy = 0.27, 95% CI: 0.12, 0.48). However the ERR/Gy decreased and lost its significance after adjusting for dose from external gamma-rays. Results of the current study are in good agreement with risk estimates obtained for the Japanese LSS cohort as well as other studies of cohorts of nuclear workers.