One of the early indicators of ill health effects to come is the rise in Pneumonia according to my research.
Exposure to prolonged doses of ionizing radiation due to a accident is linked to an increase in Respiratory illness up to and including lung
cancer..
The effects on the pulmonary system are not acute and usually appear one to six months after exposure, especially after therapeutic exposures.
Pneumonitis with resultant alveolar hemorrhage and pulmonary edema occurs earlier than the dreaded post-radiation pneumonia, which is often
fatal.
source
studies have been done to show the increase in cases of lung cancer
Human health research studies compare the patterns of disease among groups of people with different amounts of exposure to a suspected risk
factor. Below are results reported from such studies of lung cancer among people exposed to ionizing radiation.
All of these studies found increased risk and possible increases in lung cancer risk among exposed groups
source of study showing the testing
results..
before the onsets of cases of cancer other respiratory illnesses start showing up in contaminated areas..
after the 1986 disaster at Chernobyl reactor an increase in Pneumonia was found
Distinct changes in the clinical picture of acute pneumonia were noted in patients subjected to constant prolonged (1986-1990) effect of small
doses of ionizing radiation as a result of residing in the contaminated territory after the Chernobyl atomic station disaster. These changes included
increased duration of the disease, frequency of protracted forms, suppression of the immune system
source
to understand the next report I feel I need to provide this info
Vital capacity is the maximum amount of air a person can expel from the lungs after a maximum inspiration. It is equal to the inspiratory reserve
volume plus the tidal volume plus the expiratory reserve volume.
A person's vital capacity can be measured by a spirometer which can be a wet or regular spirometer. In combination with other physiological
measurements, the vital capacity can help make a diagnosis of underlying lung disease
wiki
After the Chernobyl accident in 1986, children of the contaminated Narodichesky region of Ukraine were obliged to participate in a yearly medical
screening. They have been exposed to ^sup 137^cesium (^sup 137^Cs; half-life = 30 years) in contaminated soils, air, and food.
RESULTS: Children living in villages with the highest quintile of soil ^sup 137^Cs were 2.60 times more likely to have forced vital capacity (FVC)
< 80% of predicted [95% confidence interval (CI), 1.07-6.34] and 5.08 times more likely to have a ratio of forced expiratory volume in 1 sec (FEV^sub
1^) to FVC% < 80% (95% CI, 1.02-25.19). We found statistically significant evidence of both airway obstruction (FEV^sub 1^/FVC%, peak expiratory flow,
and maximum expiratory flow at 25%, 50%, and 75% of FVC) and restriction (FVC) with increasing soil ^sup 137^Cs.
CONCLUSIONS: These findings are unique and suggest significant airway obstruction and restriction consequences for children chronically exposed to
low-dose radioactive contaminants
source
Infant death rates showed an increase as well with Pneumonia listed as a top cause of death
These findings document elevated rates of neonatal and postneonatal mortality in the Mogilev region of Belarus compared to rates in Europe and the
US.
The major causes of infant deaths are shown in Table 1. For male infants, pneumonia (12.3%), prematurity (11.8%), acute viral syndrome/influenza
(10.5%), congenital heart defects (10.2%), asphyxia (5.9%), cardiopulmonary insufficiency (5.2%) and multiple congenital defects (5.2%) represented
leading causes of death. Among female infants, the leading causes of death were acute viral syndrome (12.4%), congenital heart defects (11.0%),
pneumonia (10.4%), prematurity (9.7%), asphyxia (5.8), multiple congenital defects (5.2%) and cardiopulmonary insufficiency (5.0%).
a note should be made that
this study lists several other factors as well, poor health care
system..etc.. does not directly tie in to radiation exposure but does not rule it out either.
that leads us to
SENDAI — At least 11 people have died of pneumonia and about 150 have been hospitalized with the illness at Ishinomaki Red Cross Hospital in
Miyagi Prefecture since the March 11 quake and tsunami, the hospital said Tuesday.
Cases of pneumonia are also increasing at hospitals in other tsunami-ravaged areas, including Kesennuma City Hospital, also in Miyagi, and Iwate
Prefectural Miyako Hospital
The number of patients is five to six times higher than during the same period last year, it said.
source
I am NOT saying all these cases are a result of radiation exposure..however these events do need to be watched..
and for anyone wanting to watch for a increase in the U.S this may be a good site to watch..
CDC
however keep in mind a increase may be hard to spot
The proportion of deaths attributed to pneumonia and influenza (P&I) has been at or above the epidemic threshold for 11 consecutive weeks
