Experimental acute radiodermatitis following beta irradiation. I. its pathogenesis and repair

LTHOUGH MORE ATTENTION has been focusedA on the effect of radiation on the skin than on any other tissue of the body,ls very few recent experimental observations on animals are to be found on this subject and only two deal with the acute effects of beta radiation on animal skin.13,21 Many excellent reviews are available on radiodermatitis in 39 e.the lesion in sufficient pathogenic detail to support further investigation toward a better understanding of this injury, especially along nonmorphological lines.The study of the histopathology of acute radiodermatitis presented here was made to obtain a more precise picture of the sequence of events in its pathogenesis and repair in rats exposed locally to beta radiation.This morphological study will be used in later reports to aid in determining and orienting the etiological interrelationships of changes found in physiological and chemical experiments.8, Q .10, 12, 10, 17. 18. 20 none, however, considers MATERIALS AND METHODSTwo hundred and sixteen Sprague-Dawley rats weighing 250 to 300 gm. each were used in this study.Their abdomens were shaved with an eIectric clipper so that the hair was removed without injuring the epidermis.T h e techniques of Raper, Zirkle, and Barnes were used in irradiating the animals with beta-ray sources.The rats were anesthetized with ether during the entire exposure with radioactive strontium (Sr") and during the first two minutes of the exposure with radioactive phosphorus (P32).The SrgO was deposited on an aluminum disc .