RADIATION DOSE

(*) The total amount of ionizing radiation absorbed by material or tissues, expressed in centigrays. (DOD only) The term radiation dose is often used in the sense of the exposure dose expressed in roentgens, which is a measure of the total amount of ionization that the quantity of radiation could produce in air. This could be distinguished from the absorbed dose, also given in rads, which represents the energy absorbed from the radiation per gram of specified body tissue. Further, the biological dose, in rems, is a measure of the biological effectiveness of the radiation exposure. See also absorbed dose; exposure dose.