"Food Poisoning? " Symptoms of Acute Radiation Damage, for Doctors.Dr.Soko "Atomic Bomb 75 Years"DAY41/50

Food Poisoning? Vomiting/Diarrhea/Appetite Loss

〜Hospital in the Next Day of Bombing〜

In the book "Hiroshima Diary", Dr. Michihiko Hachiya wrote the situation inside the hospital on August 7, the day after the atomic bomb dropped.

"The hospital floor was contaminated overnight by the vomiting of patients who were packed into a hospital. Patients had spent in a dark hospital with no light. They were workers in this hospital, or people who was not able to escape. Some were who lost their energy to escape and somehow managed to get to this hospital. ... Vomiting and diarrhea were severe. Patients who couldn't walk had vomit on the floor overnight, as well as they had urine and stool on the floor."

This is how the next day the atomic bomb fell. According to this statement, from the day of the atomic bomb on August 6, severe vomiting and diarrhea were observed from Day 1 of the atomic bomb exploded.

Goiania Accident（Acidente radiológico de Goiânia）

It was an acute radiation injury accident due to the theft of radiation therapy equipment in Goiania, Brazil, in September 1987. It is an accident in which 249 people were exposed, and 4 people were dead. Young men who stole medical devices stored Cesium had severe radiation damage caused their deaths, as well as their family had. Because they did not know about the radioactive materials, they brought the "beautifully shining materials" to their home. Their neighbors were also exposed.

On September 13, two young men stole radiotherapy equipment from an abandoned hospital, because they had heard that "there is something expensive in that hospital." When the cesium box was destroyed, they found the "shining powder in blue and white" which they had never seen before. They placed it at home, and shared it with his friends and family.

From 13th September, two young men had vomiting symptoms.　They thought they had had food poisoning. 

From September 14, diarrhea and dizziness were observed. Possibility of food poisoning and food allergies are suspected at the hospital.

On September 28, one of the young men brought a bag containing cesium to the health authorities office, "I think this is the cause."

On September 29, an acute radiation injury was discovered by a doctor who measured the radiation concentration of the bag  with a dosimeter. Initially, the doctor was also skeptical that he suspected a malfunction of the dosimeter. The doctor observed that the meter showed over the limit even with another dosimeter. He was convinced that it was the effect of radiation. The patient's symptoms were found to be due to acute radiation injury.

The shining cesium in white was placed on the dining table in the young man's house. His daughter, who was eating a meal with her hands touched the shining powder, died on October 23.

Histopathological analysis of the deceased patients revealed a skin ulcer on the left hand, a large amount of bloody stool in the digestive tract, internal bleeding in multiple organs, cerebral hemorrhage, aplastic anemia (abnormal bone marrow), and hair loss.

Vomiting and Diarrhea (food poisoning-like symptoms), Multiple persons, Sore throat

Acute Radiation Syndrome is such a rare case that it is not normally encountered in the modern medical setting of 2020. Just because you have diarrhea or vomiting, you don't have to suspect radiation damage from the start in everyday medical practice. However,doctors have to make sure,  if the initial symptoms of radiation damage are not known, the diagnosis will be delayed when actually seen in the clinical setting.

Russian Navy's Radiation Accident

"On August 8, 2019, a nuclear-powered missile exploded at a Navy experimental facility in Nynoksa, Arkhangelsk Oblast, northern Russia. At that time, doctors who coped with treating injured patients were not informed about  the radiation accident by the government. The doctors and staffs were not informed that they would be in the danger of radiation exposure. So,  treatments for injured people had delayed and also doctors had risks of  the exposure of the radiation. 

”Diarrhea and Vomiting","Multiple Patients","Sore throat", "Suspected radioactive leak"

Vomiting and diarrhea are very common initial symptoms in patients exposed to high levels of radiation, which must be remembered by physicians in primary care settings. 

Furthermore, if this symptom affected multiple people who live close to each other, the symptom of radiation accident  is suspected. In addition, if patients had sore throat as seen in Hiroshima and there was a possibility of a radiation accident, you should suspect that patients had been exposed to high-concentration radiation in a short time.

In general, radiation accidents are rare. However, if small nuclear weapons are developed in the future, we cannot say that we will not encounter a radiation accident, including terrorism. Primary care and family physicians should keep in mind of the initial symptoms of radiation damage.

A few days later, when the digestive symptoms improved slightly, sore throat and pain in the mouth, stomatitis, tonsillitis, and esophageal symptoms became noticeable. In addition, several days later, the number of people with improved trauma improves, but bleeding from the gums and bleeding inside the skin become noticeable. This bleeding tendency indicates severity. It was often seen in Hiroshima and Nagasaki, but it was very strange at that time that some of the people who were caring for burns and injuries died worse at this time than those injured, and some died.

Of course, we should stop using nuclear weapons to prevent that from happening. After all, nuclear weapons cause more damage in children than in adults. And, unnecessarily for decades, it repeatedly causes illness and afflicts people. 

It is painful only to imagine that our family suffers from this pointless, criminal, inhumane weapon. Shouldn't we ban the production and use of nuclear weapons? The victims of the past may have taught this significant matter to us.