Urinary excretion measurements for the assessment of body burden of radiocaesium in man: differences between potassium and creatinine normalisation

Relationships between 24-h urinary excretion and body burden of 137Cs obtained in a south-Swedish population, together with data from the literature, were applied to urine samples collected in 1994–95 from adult subjects living in Russia, in order to estimate their average body burden of 137Cs. Estimates obtained through creatinine normalisation of the 137Cs content in the Russian urine were a factor of 2 higher than estimates obtained through potassium normalisation. The accuracy of both these normalisation methods is discussed, as well as the influence of the difference in dietary habits between the two populations.