Intelligence deterioration following acute radiation sickness

摘要

Objective: Cognitive impairment in the remote period of Acute Radiation Sickness (ARS) is an expected outcome. This study was performed to examine the contribution of irradiation on intelligence deterioration. Method: 14?C15 years after the Chernobyl accident, a cross-sectional IQ-study on ARS-patients (n=29) and normal controls (n=24) was done. Verbal (VIQ), Performance (PIQ) and Full (FIQ) IQs were assessed by the adapted version of the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale (WAIS). Pre-exposure IQ was estimated by the regression equation developed by Dr. Beilin Gao (China). Results: VIQ and FIQ scores were lower in ARS-patients than in controls (MSD: 103.213.5 vs 113.89.4, and 102.211.4 vs 110.28.6, correspondingly). Radiation dose of 1 Gy decreases FIQ of 4.1?C6 scores at a dose range of 1?C3.8 Gy. A reduction of 1 point of FIQ could be a result of exposure to 0.17?C0.24 Gy. Discrepancy between pre- exposure and actual IQ (MSD) in ARS-patients is dramatically severe as compared to controls: VIQ - 15.814.4 vs 2.34.5, PIQ - 14.210.8 vs 8.73.5, and 16.812.7 vs 5.92.6, correspondingly. Conclusions: According to pre-exposure IQ estimations, IQ deterioration in ARS-patients, especially, in verbal and full intelligence, was observed. Such cognitive impairment could be evidence of a brain organic syndrome with an important involvement of the left dominant hemisphere, in the remote period of ARS.