Introduction A few epidemiologic studies have reported increased risk of circulatory disease among population exposed to ionizing radiation although the mechanism has not been established.

Objectives We investigated the association between occupational radiation exposure and inflammatory biomarkers in medical workers at interventional radiology departments.

Methods We conducted a field survey for interventional medical workers in 2017. Individual radiation dose was linked to the National Dose Registry in 1996–2017. Twenty-three inflammatory biomarkers related to circulatory diseases were measured using by multiplex immunoassays in blood plasma. Multiple linear regression analysis was used to analyze the associations between radiation exposure and inflammatory biomarkers adjusted for potential confounders.

Results A total of 73 male medical workers (52 radiologists, 21 radiologic technologists) were included in this study and they have been worked for a mean of 11.1 years at the department of interventional radiology. The mean cumulative badge dose was 22.5 mSv, which ranged from the 0.01 to 109.3 mSv. The pro-inflammatory cytokines IFN-β, IFN-γ, and anti-inflammatory cytokines IL-1ra, IL-4 were significantly decreased with cumulative occupational radiation dose (coefficient = -0.388 per 10 mSv, -0.080 per 10 mSv, -0.564 per 10 mSv, -0.068 per 10 mSv, respectively), whereas endothelial cell adhesion molecules E-selectin and pro-inflammatory cytokines MIF showed significantly increased association (coefficient = 0.058 per 10 mSv, 0.189 per 10 mSv, respectively). The association between radiation dose and the level of biomarkers were similar by job titles.

Conclusion This study suggests that low-dose occupational radiation exposure was associated with a few inflammatory biomarkers related with circulatory diseases among interventional medical workers. However, given some limitations, further investigation with larger population are warranted.