Another document produced by the environment ministry addressed to the ministry's Centre for Prevention of Radiation, describes "the theft of a highly dangerous radioactive source of Ir-192 (
Iridium-192) with highly radioactive activity belonging to SGS (Istanbul-based company) from a depot belonging to Weatherford in the Rafidhia area of Basra province".
They then placed a string of
iridium-192 pellets inside the treated arteries of roughly half the patients for up to 20 minutes.
The system uses the gamma-radiating source
Iridium-192 in a one-time treatment to interrupt neointimal formation within the stent lumen.
Tenders are invited for the supply of ionizing radiation sources based on
iridium-192 and selenium-75 isotopes
Citing the AELB, he said the RDD is a non-nuclear industrial radiography equipment containing the radioactive isotope
Iridium-192 that emits beta and gamma radiation.
As a result of the mishap radioactive particles escaped from the isotope handling cell and contaminated the laboratory, which was involved in producing radioactive sources containing
iridium-192.
Since April 1998, the firm has been marketing cobalt-60,
iridium-192, strontium-89, barium-133, and nickel-63.
