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Risk Perception and Anxiety Regarding Radiation after the 2011 Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant Accident: A Systematic Qualitative Review.

ABSTRACT: The purpose of this study was to provide a review of the publications of the risk perceptions or anxiety regarding radiation among people living in Japan after the 2011 Fukushima nuclear power plant accident. Two database (MEDLINE and PsycINFO) and hand-searched the references in identified publications were searched. For each identified publication, the measurements and time related-change of risk perception and anxiety regarding radiation were summarized. Twenty-four publications were identified. Quantitative measures of risk perception or anxiety were roughly divided into two types: single-item Likert scales that measure anxiety about radiation; and theoretical, or model-based measures. Rates of Fukushima residents with radiation-related anxiety decreased from 2012 to 2015. Factors governing risk perception or radiation-related anxiety were summarized by demographics, disaster-related stressors, trusted information, and radiation-related variables. The effects of risk perception or anxiety regarding radiation were summarized as severe distress, intention to leave employment or not to return home, or other dimensions. This review provides summary of current findings on risk perception or anxiety regarding radiation in Japan after the accident. Further researches are needed about detailed statistical analysis for time-related change and causality among variables.

SUBMITTER: Takebayashi Y

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5707945 | biostudies-literature |

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Project description:In the wake of the 2011 Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station accident, to facilitate evidence-based risk communication we need to understand radiation risk perception and the effectiveness of risk-comparison information. We measured and characterized perceptions of dread risks and unknown risks regarding dietary radionuclides in residents of Fukushima, Tokyo, and Osaka to identify the primary factors among location, evacuation experience, gender, age, employment status, absence/presence of spouse, children and grandchildren, educational background, humanities/science courses, smoking habits, and various types of trustworthy information sources. We then evaluated the effects of these factors and risk-comparison information on multiple outcomes, including subjective and objective understanding, perceived magnitude of risk, perceived accuracy of information, backlash against information, and risk acceptance. We also assessed how risk-comparison information affected these multiple outcomes for people with high risk perception. Online questionnaires were completed by people (n = 9249) aged from 20 to 69 years in the three prefectures approximately 5 years after the accident. We gave each participant one of 15 combinations of numerical risk data and risk-comparison information, including information on standards, smoking-associated risk, and cancer risk, in accordance with Covello's guidelines. Dread-risk perception among Fukushima residents with no experience of evacuation was much lower than that in Osaka residents, whereas evacuees had strikingly higher dread-risk perception, irrespective of whether their evacuation had been compulsory or voluntary. We identified location (distance from the nuclear power station), evacuation experience, and trust of central government as primary factors. Location (including evacuation experience) and trust of central government were significantly associated with the multiple outcomes above. Only information on "cancer risk from radiation and smoking risk" enhanced both subjective and objective understanding without diminishing trust in all participants and in the high dread-risk perception group; use of other risk-comparison information could lead the public to overestimate risk.

Project description:The increase in risk for late-onset thyroid cancer due to radiation exposure is a potential health effect after a nuclear power plant accident mainly due to the release of radioiodine in fallout. The risk is particularly elevated in those exposed during infancy and adolescence. To estimate the possibility and extent of thyroid cancer occurrence after exposure, it is of utmost importance to collect and analyze epidemiological information providing the basis for evaluation of radiation risk, and to consider radiobiology and molecular genetics. In this regard, the dose-response of cancer risk, temporal changes in the rates of thyroid cancer, its histopathological types and subtypes, and frequency of underlying genetic abnormalities are important. At present, however, it is difficult or impossible to distinguish radiation-induced thyroid cancer from spontaneous/sporadic thyroid cancer because molecular radiation signatures, biomarkers of radiation exposure, or genetic factors specific to radiation-induced cancer have not yet been identified. The large-scale ultrasound screening in Fukushima Prefecture of Japan demonstrated a high detection rate of thyroid cancer in young individuals, revealing 116 and 71 cases in the first and second rounds, respectively, among the same cohort of approximately 300,000 subjects. These findings raised concerns among residents and the public that it might be due to putative exposure to radiation from the accident at Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant. This review summarizes evaluations by international organizations and reviews scientific publications by the authors and others on childhood thyroid cancer, especially those relevant to radiation, including basic studies on molecular mechanisms of thyroid carcinogenesis. Clinical details are also provided on surgical cases in Fukushima Prefecture, and the effect of thyroid ultrasound screening is discussed. Correct understanding of issues relating to radiation and the thyroid are essential for interpretation of thyroid cancer in Fukushima.

Project description:BackgroundTo shed light on the mental health of evacuees after the accident at Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station (FDNPS), we evaluate the results of the Fukushima Health Management Survey (FHMS) of the residents at Kawauchi village in Fukushima, which is located less than 30 km from the FDNPS.MethodsWe conducted the cross-sectional study within the framework of the FHMS. Exposure values were "anorexia," "subjective feelings about health," "feelings about sleep satisfaction," and "bereavement caused by the disaster," confounding variables were "age" and "sex," and outcome variables were "K6 points." We collected data from the FHMS, and employed the Kessler Psychological Distress Scale (K6) and the posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) Checklist Stressor-Specific Version (PCL-S) to carry out the research. A total of 13 or greater was the cut-off for identifying serious mental illness using the K6 scale. The study subjects included residents (n = 542) of over 30 years of age from Kawauchi village, and data were used from the period of January 1, 2012 to October 31, 2012.ResultsA total of 474 residents (87.5%) scored less than 13 points in the K6 and 68 (12.6%) scored 13 points or more. The proportion of elderly residents (over 65 years old) among people with K6 score above the cut-off was higher than that among people with K6 score below the cut-off (44.1 vs 31.0%, p < 0.05). In addition, the proportion of residents with anorexia and mental illness among people with K6 score above the cut-off was higher than among people with K6 score below the cut-off (p < 0.001 and p < 0.05, respectively). The amount of residents who scored 44 points or more in the PCL-S among people with K6 score above the cut-off was also considerably higher than among people with K6 score below the cut-off (79.4 vs 12.9%, p < 0.001). Interestingly, the proportion of residents who scored more than among people with K6 score above the cut-off and the among people with PCL-S score above the cut-off in Kawauchi was higher than in previous studies in other locations.ConclusionsThese results suggest that there are severe mental health problems, such as depression and PTSD, among adults as a consequence of the accident at the FDNPS. Our study showed that residents who lived in the evacuation zone before the disaster are at high risk psychological distress. To facilitate local residents' recovery from Fukushima, there is a need to continue providing them with physical and mental support, as well as communication regarding the health risks of radiation.

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Risk Perception and Anxiety Regarding Radiation after the 2011 Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant Accident: A Systematic Qualitative Review.

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