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Acute radiation syndrome (ARS), also known as radiation sickness or radiation poisoning, is a collection of health effects that are caused by being exposed to high amounts of ionizing radiation in a short period of time. [1]
Radiation colitis is injury to the colon caused by radiation therapy. It is usually associated with treatment for prostate cancer or cervical cancer . [ 1 ] Common symptoms are diarrhea , a feeling of being unable to empty the bowel , [ 2 ] gastrointestinal bleeding, and abdominal pain.
Chronic radiation damage to the rectum (>3 months) may cause rectal bleeding, incontinence, or a change in bowel habits secondary. Severe cases may lead to with strictures or fistulae formation. [ 5 ] [ 4 ] Chronic radiation proctopathy can present at a median time of 8-12 months following radiation therapy.
Radiation enteropathy represents the longer-term, chronic effects that may be found after a latent period most commonly of 6 months to 3 years after the end of treatment. In some cases, it does not become a problem for 20–30 years after successful curative therapy.
The risk of systemic infection is higher when the organism has a combined injury, such as a conventional blast, thermal burn, [3] or radiation burn. [2] There is a direct quantitative relationship between the magnitude of the neutropenia that develops after exposure to radiation and the increased risk of developing infection. Because no ...
Radiation-induced lumbar plexopathy (RILP) or radiation-induced lumbosacral plexopathy (RILSP) is nerve damage in the pelvis and lower spine area caused by therapeutic radiation treatments. RILP is a rare side effect of external beam radiation therapy [ 1 ] [ 2 ] [ 3 ] and both interstitial and intracavity brachytherapy radiation implants.
External beam radiation therapy is generally given over several weeks, with daily visits to a radiation therapy center. New types of radiation therapy such as IMRT have fewer side effects than traditional treatment. However, in the short term, EBRT has been associated with acute worsening of urinary obstructive and bowel symptoms.
It is distinct from acute radiation syndrome, in that it occurs at dose rates low enough to permit natural repair mechanisms to compete with the radiation damage during the exposure period. Dose rates high enough to cause the acute form (> ~0.1 Gy/h) are fatal long before onset of the chronic form.