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equivalent dose
A measure of the local radiation damage caused to biological tissue through exposure to intense ionizing radiation, such as alpha particles. Local damage to DNA is harder for the body to repair than the more diffuse damage from gamma rays and beta particles. This relative biological effectiveness gives rise to the use of equivalent dose, which is the absorbed dose multiplied by an appropriate radiation weighting factor (WR). The value of WR is 20 for alpha particles, and 1 for both beta particles and gamma rays. The resulting unit of equivalent dose is the sievert (Sv). Submultiples are the millisievert and microsievert. Prior to 1990, the weighting factor used was referred to as Quality Factor (QF).
Another quantity, known as the effective dose, which also has units of Sv, is the equivalent dose weighted for the differing radiosensitivities of individual tissues. Associated with this is a factor called detriment, which gives the probability of stochastic effects occurring.
Equivalent dose is often referred to simply as "dose" in every day use of radiation terminology. The old unit of "dose equivalent" or "dose" was rem.
Units conversion
dose in Sv = absorbed dose (in gray) × WR
dose in rem = dose in rad × QF
1 Sv = 100 rem
1 rem = 10 mSv (millisievert = one thousandth of a sievert)
1 Gy air dose equivalent to 0.7 Sv tissue dose
1 R (roentgen) exposure is approximately equivalent to 10 mSv tissue dose
Related categories
• HEALTH AND DISEASE
• SPACE AND AEROSPACE MEDICINE
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