What is Radioactive Iodine's effect on computers?

Question

When a person is going to get Radioactive Iodine medication, he/she will be isolated for 5 days. She will need to use a laptop for many purposes. Can she bring the laptop into the isolation room with her? Will it affect the laptop?

And after isolation, the laptop may be used by someone else. How many days are needed to isolate the laptop to make it radiation free?

Answer 1

These are all questions for those providing the treatment, not for strangers on the internet!

I doubt that the iodine isotopes used for radiation therapy will have any effect at all on a laptop, but again, you should ask the hospital folks...

Best wishes

Answer 2

You will need to clean the computer well - when I had my Radioactive iodine they were really more concerned about the things like fabrics and couches and beds and clothing than the hard items - things that absorb your body oils, etc.  

You need to ask if you can bring the laptop to the iso room - I was isolated at home, so I don't know (everyone left and stayed somewhere else, then I had to clean the bathroom really well with bleach, wash my clothing and bed sheets 3 times and wash down all surfaces with water and soap.  I stayed in my room the whole time and had to wash my own dishes (you can't use paper) but they said if I sat on the couch that I should cover it with a blanket that could be washed.  I used the remote and my computer and they said just wash them down.

It will not hurt your electronics and they don't need to be in isolation, just cleaned.

Good luck - It's a crazy experience that radioactive iodine!