Exposure To Depleted Uranium Overview

Uranium (U-235 and U-238) is a heavy metal that is naturally occurring in the environment. It can be found in almost all rock, soil, and water and is a weakly radioactive substance. Depleted Uranium (DU) is a by-product of uranium processing. DU is what remains after some of the more radioactive components (called isotopes) are removed from natural uranium for use in nuclear fuel. Therefore, DU is 40% less radioactive than natural uranium. Ingesting or inhaling large concentrations of uranium can cause severe health effects.

First deployed on a large scale during the Gulf War, the U.S. military uses depleted uranium (DU) for tank armor and projectiles due to its high density, helping it to penetrate enemy armored vehicles. It is also used in defensive armor plating.

DU munitions are controversial because of unanswered questions about potential long-term health effects. When DU munitions penetrate armor or burn, they create depleted uranium oxides in the form of dust that can be inhaled or contaminate wounds. Additionally, fragments of munitions or armor can become embedded in the body.

Signs and Symptoms

Health effects of DU are determined by factors such as the extent of exposure and whether it was internal or external. Increased rates of immune-system disorders and other wide-ranging symptoms, including chronic pain, fatigue, and memory loss, have been reported in over one quarter of combat veterans of the 1991 Persian Gulf War, who were found to have up to 14 times the usual level of chromosome abnormalities in their genes.

DU is less toxic than other heavy metals, such as arsenic and mercury, and is only very weakly radioactive because of its long half-life. While any radiation exposure has risks, no conclusive epidemiological data have correlated DU exposure to specific human health effects, such as cancer. However, studies using cultured cells and laboratory rodents continue to suggest leukemogenic, genetic, reproductive, and neurological effects from chronic exposure.

A 2005 epidemiology review concluded: “In aggregate the human epidemiological evidence is consistent with increased risk of birth defects in offspring of persons exposed to DU.”

A 2001 study of 15,000 February 1991 U.S. Gulf War combat veterans and 15,000 control veterans found the Gulf War veterans were 1.8 (fathers) to 2.8 (mothers) times more likely to have children with birth defects, and after examination of their children’s medical records two years later, the birth defect rate increased by more than 20 percent.

Risk Factors

Exposure to a hazardous substance, such as DU, requires not only that it be present, but that the material gets into the body. DU can enter the body via breathing, eating, skin absorption, and/or being wounded with a fragment of DU. Just being near tanks or ammunitions that contain DU will not result in exposure or cause a health risk.

Exposure to DU is most likely for servicemembers who were in or on a vehicle struck by DU weapons. Other servicemembers may have been exposed if they:

  • entered vehicles immediately after impact, or
  • were near fires or explosions involving DU weapons or armor.

When these fires are very hot, very fine dust-like DU particles are created. The particles can be inhaled into the lungs, swallowed, or contaminate open wounds. Inhaled DU particles can take several years to be cleared from the lungs. Shrapnel containing DU embedded in tissue, can also remain in the body for many years.

A laboratory study on rats produced by the Armed Forces Radiobiology Research Institute showed that, after a study period of 6 months, rats treated with depleted uranium coming from implanted pellets, comparable to the average levels in the urine of Desert Storm veterans with retained DU fragments, had developed a significant tendency to lose weight with respect to the control group. In addition, substantial amounts of uranium were accumulating in their brains and central nervous systems and showed a significant reduction of neuronal activity in the hippocampus in response to external stimuli.

The conclusions of the study show that brain damage from chronic uranium intoxication is possible at lower doses than previously thought. Results from computer-based neuro-cognitive tests performed in 1997 showed an association between uranium in the urine and “problematic performance on automated tests assessing performance efficiency and accuracy.”

Despite the information presented above, however, several other scientific studies have concluded that DU ammunition has no measurable detrimental health effects.

Treatment

If you are worried about possible exposure to DU, talk to your local Environmental Health Coordinator Environmental Health Coordinators – Public Health (va.gov) or VA medical provider.  Ask to be tested for DU.  The steps for testing include:

  • Your VA facility orders a special urine collection kit from the MEDU Surveillance Center.
  • Your VA provider works with you to complete a DU exposure questionnaire and submit a urine sample.
  • You will visit one of the main VA medical facilities for the urine collection.
  • Your local facility submits your specimen and questionnaire to the MEDU Surveillance Center.

The Metal Exposures and Depleted Uranium (MEDU) Surveillance Center is located at the Baltimore VA Medical Center. The Center has two missions related to Depleted Uranium (DU):

  1. To provide screening, testing, and follow-up for 1991 Gulf War Veterans exposed to DU through ‘friendly fire’ incidents.
  2. To offer DU screening and testing to any Veteran worried about DU exposure.

Other Resources and Support

https://www.publichealth.va.gov/exposures/depleted_uranium/index.asp

https://www.publichealth.va.gov/exposures/benefits/registry-evaluation.asp

https://www.publichealth.va.gov/exposures/depleted_uranium/followup_program.asp

https://www.cdc.gov/radiation-emergencies/hcp/isotopes/uranium-235-238.html