Facing the nuclear threat: thyroid blocking revisited.

Context: People being exposed to potentially harmful amounts of radioactive iodine need prophylaxis to prevent high radiation-absorbed doses to the thyroid.

Objective: Parameters determining the individual protective effect of a pharmacological intervention were investigated.

Design And Participants: Biokinetics of (123)I was evaluated in 27 healthy volunteers (aged 22-46 yr, median 25 yr, in total 48 assessments) twice in a baseline measurement of the undisturbed kinetics and in an intervention assessment 48 h later.