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in two weeks i will radiate thyroid, i said i would never do this but after 2 & a half years of tapazole the time has come . i have small kids at home ,should i make arrangments to stay away for a couple days after radioactive iodine???? my letter from nuclear medicine said they would inform me of this at the time of treatment, well i need to make arrangments before the day of, any info would be great !!
Making plans to spend a few days away from the kids (or them away from you — like with relatives) might be appropriate. In general, the precautions depend upon the dose of RAI you get: the higher the dose, the more precautions, the longer the period away. Typically, the first two days are the most important: the first 48 hours or so after RAI, you will be shedding any of the radiation that did not make it into your thyroid. We lose the excess through saliva, sweat and urine because RAI is very water soluble. Also, the smaller the children or pets, the more distance you need to keep. (We have a tendency to hold small children/pets and that puts them closer to the thyroid itself.) Even with doses on the larger size (but not as large, say as the dose folks with thyroid cancer get), after a week (the half life of RAI is 8.1 days), it is typically considered safe for us to be around others, because only half the dose is left in the thyroid itself.
Keep in mind that the precautions are designed to prevent you from exposing someone else to UNNECESSARY radiation. None of the literature show that the RAI harms us longterm and we get the biggest dose. But radiation is cumulative over our lifespan, and it has a bigger impact on small and young, so avoiding unnecessary exposure to others is prudent.
I do wish you good luck with your treatment.
Hi Jake,
I don’t have small kids, but I have a small dog. So when I had RAI, he went to his sitter for a long weekend. Otherwise I lived alone, but if I had others in my household at the time, I would’ve treated myself to a long weekend at a hotel where I could order room service and basically stay isolated while still enjoying my down time. I felt fine other than a sore throat on days 3-4. You’re also only really exposing radiation via bodily fluids – sweat, urine, saliva, etc. – so you don’t have to worry about exposing hotel workers or the next guests to stay in the room as long as you follow the precautions nuclear medicine will give you. Things like flushing twice, showering twice a day, and using plastic utensils (you can bring your own and just not use the ones that come with room service).Treat this as a mini vacation – you’ve earned it dealing with Graves’. I saw your recent post about double vision so make sure you get that checked out by a neuro-ophthalmologist or at least an ophthalmologist who treats TED, not an optometrist or optician.
Just a quick note on hotels…the doc who presented at our San Diego conference said that he does not suggest a post-RAI hotel stay, because of the risk that the next guest or the housekeeping staff could be exposed…especially if it’s someone who is pregnant. Of course, an option would be to let your family enjoy the hotel stay!
It would be a good idea to get the specific guidelines from your nuclear medicine facility in advance, as these can vary from state to state. Generally, it’s sufficient to keep a certain distance away from children for the specified period of time. The problem, though, with very small children is that they won’t understand this restriction and will want to be close to you…so that’s why many people end up making alternate arrangements for their kids.
Also, I would second Bobbi’s advice from the other thread that a visit to an experienced ophthalmologist would be a good idea prior to RAI, since you have had recent issues with double vision.
Wishing you all the best!
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