ABSTRACT
ICRU Report No. 39 is the first of what will be a series of ICRU documents treating methods for determining the dose equivalents resulting from exposure to sources external to the body. The Report states definitions of quantities to be employed in the monitoring of ionizing radiation that provide a basis for effective radiation protection.
This Report discusses the dosimetric implications of recommendations of the International Commission on Radiological Protection, defines the dose equivalents pertinent for monitoring irradiation of the trunk of the body, and sets out desirable characteristics and current capabilities of instruments for measuring the defined dose equivalents. The information is intended to make it possible to specify, in numerical terms, the degree of irradiation that occurs when individuals are exposed to external sources of ionizing radiation.