Skin, eye, and testis: current exposure problems and recent advances in radiobiology

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Abstract
Three organs, the skin, eye, and testis are potentially at risk from poorly penetrating radiations such as beta particles or low energy X-rays. They may be preferentially irradiated in fields with steep depth-dose gradients and thereby dictate radiological protection procedures. Since there is not a wide margin of safety in the annual permissible dose limits for these organs it is important to have clearly defensible methods of dose assessment. This requires both an adequate understanding of the radiobiology of these organs and the availability of experimental techniques for measuring doses at various depths near the surface of the body. This paper reviews the current state of knowledge in this field, drawing partly on information from two recent (1985) CEC workshops on the 'Dosimetry of Beta Particles and Low Energy X-rays' and 'Radiation Damage to the Skin'. It is concluded that protection criteria for the limitation of skin dose are in need of revision.