See Also: acute radiation syndrome(medicine)
Acute radiation syndrome(health)
Acute brain syndrome(health)
acute nephritic syndrome(medicine)
acute urethral syndrome(medicine)
acute brain syndrome(medicine)
acute organic brain syndrome(medicine)
retinal necrosis syndrome, acute(medicine)
Acute respiratory distress syndrome(health)
Hegg Memorial Health Center Avera Health(health)

Acute radiation syndrome (health)


An acute illness caused by a dose greater than 50 rads of penetrating radiation to most or all of the body in a short time, usually a matter of minutes. Examples of persons who suffered from acute radiation syndrome (ARS) are the survivors of the Hiroshima and Nagasaki atomic bombs and the firefighters that first responded after the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant event in 1986. A person with ARS usually goes through four stages. In the prodromal stage, the classic symptoms are nausea, vomiting, and possibly diarrhea (depending on dose) that occur from minutes to days following exposure. These symptoms may last (episodically) for minutes up to several days. Then comes the latent stage. In this stage the patient looks and feels generally healthy for a few hours or even up to a few weeks. Then comes the overt or manifest illness stage, In this stage the symptoms depend on the specific ARS syndrome and last from hours up to several months. The last stage is recovery or death. Most patients who do not recover die within several months of exposure. For those who recover, the process lasts from several weeks up to two years.