An Assessment of Indoor Radon Level in a Suburb of Ghana

Abstract

Radiation and radioactive isotopes form part of our natural environment. Elevated levels of these radioactive isotopes in the environment can pose a threat to our health. A greater proportion of the natural radiation is from the radioactive gas radon. Although it cannot be detected by human senses, radon and its progenies are of health concern as it can cause lung cancer when inhaled over a period of time. This study sought to provide baseline indoor radon data, the life time risk of lung cancer and its interpretation within a suburb of Ghana. Solid State Nuclear Track Detector (LR-115 type II) was deployed in 82 homes within a suburb for a period of three months (September 2017- January 2018). Indoor radon concentration (IRC) for the suburb was within the range of 4.1–176.3 Bq m−3. With mean 57 ± 39 Bq m−3. The mean radon exposure to the dwellers was recorded as 0.12 ± 0.08 WLMy−1 resulting in 0.7 ± 0.5 mSvy−1 effective dose to the lung with an excess lifetime cancer risk of 0.39 ± 0.26%. There was a positive correlation between indoor radon concentration and the building type and the association was significant with a P value of 0.047.