than those attributed to psychoneurosis.

”

.

my

Some personnel were frankly

alarmed and apprehensive and several complained of chronic headache and
malaise.

Repeated discussions on the effects and aspects of radiation

were necessary before these people began to relax, indicating that the
psychological aspects of radiation exposure might well be a problem in

spite of all the training done by the Department of Defense.

There

were no apparent differences.in symptoms between those who received
forty and those who received ninety roentgens.

An unsubstantiated pos-

sibility existed that the film badges might have been in error, but
such a chance was remote.
The white blood counts of the Rongelap personnel dropped from a

mean of approximately 8337 to a low mean of 5488 for adults and 4488
for children at H plus seventeen days.

By H plus thirty-nine days the

counts were on the upgrade, having risen to a mean 5900.

The U.S.

counts followed the same pattern, dropping to a low of approximately

5500 to 6000 white cells and on H plus thirty-nine days were on the increase.

The platelet counts dropped to a low of 150,000 (mean) for

U. S. personnel and 100,000 (mean) for natives about H plus twenty to
H plus twenty-five days.

Young, large platelets were much in evidence.

The count on one native reached a low of 25,000.
There was no evidence of bleeding, throat lesions or fever in any
of the personnel studied.

Biopsies of the skin lesions were studied

at the Naval Radiological Defense Laboratory and reported as degenera-

tive lesions that might possibly break down.

Urine studies for internal

fission product contamination were made by the Los Alamos Scientific

Laboratory.

AFWLIHO

Fission products were present in the 24-hour urines, but

[OF

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