The use of I-131 is an effective treatment for benign thyroid disease. It selectively destroys hyperfunctioning thyroid tissue by emission of beta radiation, and simultaneously emits gamma radiation. However, during treatment, the significant excretion of the administered activity in the urine poses a radiation risk to individuals and the environment. Therefore, appropriate radiation safety protocols must be followed when treating patients to prevent potential contamination. We performed a study at the Department of nuclear medicine at the University medical centre Ljubljana aimed to investigate the urinary I-131 excretion in patients with benign thyroid diseases during patients’ isolation period in hospital.
We performed a study in 34 hospitalized patients with hyperthyroidism due to thyroid autonomy, Graves’ disease, or iodine-induced hyperthyroidism. Urine samples were collected 2 and 4 hours after oral administration of I-131 and at the time of patient discharge from the hospital. The activity of urine samples was measured with a gamma counter that was previously calibrated. We investigated the urinary excretion of I-131 in consecutive urine samples and estimated the lower limit of the fraction of activity excreted in three urine samples. We compared the results from patients with different benign conditions. Furthermore, we calculated the effective half-life of I-131 to ascertain whether notable variations exist in the rate of urinary I-131 excretion among patients with different diagnoses. Patients with different benign conditions exhibit diverse clinical characteristics, hence we also examined the impact of these features on the excretion of I-131.
Significant differences in urinary I-131 excretion were observed among patients with different diagnoses, with the excretion also being influenced by clinical parameters. To implement radiation protection measures for patients undergoing I-131 therapy, it is crucial to consider the diagnosis and clinical characteristics of the patients, which have a significant impact on I-131 excretion. Our findings about urinary I-131 excretion may improve patient care by providing more accurate radiation safety guidelines. These will contribute to lower radiation exposure to themselves and those around them.
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