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Radiation burn

 

 
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Radiation burn
 
 
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A radiation burn is damage to the skin
Skin

The skin is the outer covering of the body, also known as the epidermis. It is the largest organ of the integumentary system made up of multiple layers of epithelial biological tissue, and guards the underlying muscles, bones, ligaments and organ s....
 or other biological tissue
Biological tissue

Tissue is a cellular organizational level intermediate between cells and a complete organism. Hence, a tissue is an ensemble of cells, not necessarily identical, but from the same origin, that together carry out a specific function....
 caused by exposure to radio frequency energy or ionizing radiation
Ionizing radiation

Ionizing radiation consists of subatomic particle radiation or electromagnetic radiation that are energetic enough to detach electrons from atoms or molecules, ionize them....
.

The most common type of radiation burn is a sunburn
SunBurn

SunBurn is a regional event held in Florida. Although SunBurn has its roots in the annual Burning Man festival in Nevada, it is not an official Burning Man event, because the organizers of SunBurn do not condone the direction that the Burning Man Organization has taken over the years....
 caused by UV radiation. High exposure to X-rays during diagnostic medical imaging
Medical imaging

Medical imaging refers to the techniques and processes used to create s of the human body for clinical purposes or medical science .As a discipline and in its widest sense, it is part of biological imaging and incorporates radiology , radiological sciences, endoscopy, thermography, medical photography and microscopy ....
 or radiotherapy can also result in radiation burns. As the ionizing radiation interacts with cells
Cell (biology)

The cell is the structural and functional unit of all known Life organisms. It is the smallest unit of an organism that is classified as living, and is often called the building bricks of life....
 within the body—damaging them—the body responds to this damage, typically resulting in erythema
Erythema

Erythema is redness of the skin caused by capillary congestion....
—that is, redness around the damaged area.






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Encyclopedia


A radiation burn is damage to the skin
Skin

The skin is the outer covering of the body, also known as the epidermis. It is the largest organ of the integumentary system made up of multiple layers of epithelial biological tissue, and guards the underlying muscles, bones, ligaments and organ s....
 or other biological tissue
Biological tissue

Tissue is a cellular organizational level intermediate between cells and a complete organism. Hence, a tissue is an ensemble of cells, not necessarily identical, but from the same origin, that together carry out a specific function....
 caused by exposure to radio frequency energy or ionizing radiation
Ionizing radiation

Ionizing radiation consists of subatomic particle radiation or electromagnetic radiation that are energetic enough to detach electrons from atoms or molecules, ionize them....
.

The most common type of radiation burn is a sunburn
SunBurn

SunBurn is a regional event held in Florida. Although SunBurn has its roots in the annual Burning Man festival in Nevada, it is not an official Burning Man event, because the organizers of SunBurn do not condone the direction that the Burning Man Organization has taken over the years....
 caused by UV radiation. High exposure to X-rays during diagnostic medical imaging
Medical imaging

Medical imaging refers to the techniques and processes used to create s of the human body for clinical purposes or medical science .As a discipline and in its widest sense, it is part of biological imaging and incorporates radiology , radiological sciences, endoscopy, thermography, medical photography and microscopy ....
 or radiotherapy can also result in radiation burns. As the ionizing radiation interacts with cells
Cell (biology)

The cell is the structural and functional unit of all known Life organisms. It is the smallest unit of an organism that is classified as living, and is often called the building bricks of life....
 within the body—damaging them—the body responds to this damage, typically resulting in erythema
Erythema

Erythema is redness of the skin caused by capillary congestion....
—that is, redness around the damaged area. Radiation burns are often associated with cancer
Cancer

Cancer is a class of diseases in which a group of cell display uncontrolled growth , invasion , and sometimes metastasis . These three malignant properties of cancers differentiate them from benign tumors, which are self-limited, do not invade or metastasize....
 due to the ability of ionizing radiation to interact and damage DNA
DNA

Deoxyribonucleic acid is a nucleic acid that contains the genetics instructions used in the development and functioning of all known living organisms and some viruses....
, occasionally inducing a cell to become cancerous. Cavity magnetron
Cavity magnetron

A cavity magnetron is a high-powered vacuum tube that generates coherence microwaves. They are commonly found in microwave ovens, as well as various radar applications....
s can be improperly used to create surface and internal burning. Depending on the photon
Photon

In physics, the photon is an elementary particle, the quantum of the electromagnetic field and the basic unit of light and all other forms of electromagnetic radiation....
 energy
Energy

In physics, energy is a scalar physical quantity that describes the amount of Work_ that can be performed by a force. Energy is an attribute of objects and systems that is subject to a conservation law....
, gamma radiation
Gamma ray

Gamma rays are a form of electromagnetic radiation produced by atom particle interactions, such as electron-positron annihilation or radioactive decay....
 can cause very deep gamma burns, with 60Co
Cobalt-60

file:60Co_gamma_spectrum_energy.pngCobalt-60 is a radioactive isotopes of cobalt of cobalt, with a half life of 5.27 years. 60Co decays by negative beta decay to the stable isotope nickel-60 ....
 internal burns common. Beta burns tend to be shallow as beta particles are not able to penetrate deep into the person; these burns can be similar to sunburn.

Radiation burns can also occur with high power radio transmitters at any frequency where the body absorbs radio frequency energy and converts it to heat. The FCC considers 50 watts to be the lowest power above which radio stations must evaluate emission safety. Frequencies considered especially dangerous occur where the human body can become resonant, at 35 MHz, 70 MHz, 400 MHz, and 1 GHz.

See also

  • Radiation poisoning
    Radiation poisoning

    Radiation poisoning, also called "radiation sickness" or a "creeping dose", is a form of damage to organ tissue due to excessive exposure to ionizing radiation....
  • Effective radiated power
    Effective radiated power

    In radio telecommunications, effective radiated power or equivalent radiated power is a standardized theoretical measurement of Radio frequency energy using the non-International System of Units unit Decibel, and is determined by subtracting system losses and adding system gains....
  • Therac-25
    Therac-25

    The Therac-25 was a radiation therapy machine produced by Atomic Energy of Canada Limited and CGR of France after the Therac-6 and Therac-20 units....


External Links

  • ARRL: RF Exposure and You