Dental perspective on radioactive nuclides in humans living on the premisses of uranium mining facilities

Abstract

Radon is a radioactive gas, generated by uranium deposits. It is emitted normally by rocks, earth’s crust, and it can delve inside the buildings through planking, wall cracks, or along the pipes [1]. It can be present not only in the air but also in soil and construction materials. In areas with high potential risk (i.e. uranium mines), radon’s air concentration can reach high values due to both soil and construction materials [2]. Recent researches showed that radon is the main source of population’s natural irradiation, contributing with approximately 57% to the effective annual radiation dose and it can rise, in certain areas, to a contribution of 95%, cases in which the exposure to natural radiation is 5-10 times higher than the medium exposure value of 2,2 mSv/year [2,3].