Agencies making recommendations for radiation exposure limits:
(1) Federal Radiation Council (FRC)
(2) National Council on Radiation Protection (NCRP, Handbooks 22, 39 and 43))
(3) Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC, 10 CFR 20)
(4) Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA, 20 CFR 1910.96)
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Limits from FRC, NCRP, and NRC
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Radiation worker
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Nonradiation worker
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annual maximum exposure (total effective dose equivalent)
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5 rem per year, not to exceed cumulative lifetime limit
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0.5 rem per year
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maximum exposure for 13 week period (quarter)
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3 rem
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NA
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cumulative lifetime limit in rem =
= 5 * (age - 18)
where:
• radiation workers are those who may potentially be exposed to radiation especially those in Radiology or Radiation Oncology Departments
• 18 indicates the youngest age when a worker might begin exposure (usually)
The dose limits for the general public are lower, since workers tend to be healthier by virtue of their ability to work and the exclusion of children and the elderly (Ellenhorn, page 1685).
Additional exposure limits specified:
(1) shallow dose equivalent to skin or extremity
(2) dose to single organ
(3) dose to lens of eye
(4) dose equivalent to minors
(5) dose equivalent to fetus or embryo
