Reduction in the diameter of human hairs following irradiation

Abstract

A measurable reduction in hair diameter was observed in human hairs following single exposures to gamma-rays, 250 KeV X-rays, 8 MV photons and 10 MV electrons in the range 2.9-14.0 Gy. The data from the different types of radiation were pooled and fitted by linear regression with a slope of 2.34 +/- 0.42% Gy-1. There was approximately 2.4% reduction in hair diameter per Gy exposure. It would appear that the measurement of damage to the matrix cells of growing human hairs exhibits potential for use in biological dosimetry, especially in cases of non-uniform overexposure.