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International audience; Following a severe nuclear reactor accident large amounts of radioactive iodine are released in the atmosphere. Health consequences estimation for the affected population is based on the dose assessment which can be derived from in vivo measurements. Since the uptake of radioactive iodine increases the thyroid cancer risk of children it is of particular interest to dispose of technical recommendations on thyroid monitoring, particularly for children.This paper summarizes recommendations that have been issued by a group of European radiation protection specialists during the CAThyMARA project. It covers technical aspects such as the choice of instruments, the calibration process, the measurement preparedness, the dose assessment and communication issues. This paper also discusses remaining gaps and serves as an introduction to other papers of this special issue.

International audience; Past radiological and nuclear accidents have demonstrated that monitoring a large number of children following a radiological and nuclear emergency can be challenging, in accommodating their needs as well as adapting monitoring protocols and applying age-specific biokinetics to account for various ages and body sizes. This paper presents the derived calibration factors for thyroid monitoring of children of all ages recommended by the International Commission on Radiological Protection using four selected detectors at given times following a short-Term (acute) intake of 131I by inhalation. These calibration factors were derived by Monte Carlo simulations using the models of various detectors and pediatric voxel phantoms. A collection of lookup tables is presented in this paper which may be directly used as a quick reference by emergency response personnel or technical experts performing thyroid monitoring and assessment without doing time-consuming calculations. © Lippincott Williams and Wilkins.

International audience; European Radiation Dosimetry Group (EURADOS) Working Group 7 is a network on internal dosimetry that brings together researchers from more than 60 institutions in 21 countries. The work of the group is organised into task groups that focus on different aspects, such as development and implementation of biokinetic models (e.g. for diethylenetriamine penta-acetic acid decorporation therapy), individual monitoring and the dose assessment process, Monte Carlo simulations for internal dosimetry, uncertainties in internal dosimetry, and internal microdosimetry. Several intercomparison exercises and training courses have been organised. The IDEAS guidelines, which describe – based on the International Commission on Radiological Protection’s (ICRP) biokinetic models and dose coefficients – a structured approach to the assessment of internal doses from monitoring data, are maintained and updated by the group. In addition, Technical Recommendations for Monitoring Individuals for Occupational Intakes of Radionuclides have been elaborated on behalf of the European Commission, DG-ENER (TECHREC Project, 2014–2016, coordinated by EURADOS). Quality assurance of the ICRP biokinetic models by calculation of retention and excretion functions for different scenarios has been performed and feedback was provided to ICRP. An uncertainty study of the recent caesium biokinetic model quantified the overall uncertainties, and identified the sensitive parameters of the model. A report with guidance on the application of ICRP biokinetic models and dose coefficients is being drafted at present. These and other examples of the group’s activities, which complement the work of ICRP, are presented. © 2018, The International Society for Prosthetics and Orthotics.

International audience; The TECHREC project, funded by the European Commission, will provide Technical Recommendations for Monitoring Individuals for Occupational Intakes of Radionuclides. It is expected that the document will be published by the European Commission as a report in its Radiation Protection Series during 2016. The project is coordinated by the European Radiation Dosimetry Group (EURADOS) and is being carried out by members of EURADOS Working Group 7 (Internal Dosimetry). This paper describes the aims and purpose of the Technical Recommendations, and explains how the project is organised. © Crown copyright 2015.

International audience; In 2011 a measurement intercomparison was launched by EURADOS WG7, with the objective of providing the participants with the tools to calibrate their detection systems for detection of 241Am in the skull bone, and evaluate the variability due to the used of the different calibration phantoms. Three skull phantoms were used in this intercomparison the USTUR Case 0102 skull phantom, the BfS skull phantom and the CSR skull phantom. Very good agreement was found between the results of the twelve participating laboratories, with relative deviations of less than 15% for the BfS phantom and less than 17% for the USTUR phantom when measurement efficiency in defined positions was compared. However, the phantoms' measured absolute 241Am activities showed discrepancies of up to a factor of 3.4. This is mainly due to the physical differences between the standard calibration phantoms used by the participants and those used in this intercomparison exercise. © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.