ADAPTATION RESOURCES OF THE CARDIOVASCULAR SYSTEM OF SCHOOLCHILDREN LIVING NEAR THE CHERNOBYL NUCLEAR POWER PLANT
Authors:   Ecology and Health Coordination and Analytical Centre, Ukraine, Dubovaya Nataliia , Bandazheuski Yuri ,   Ecology and Health Coordination and Analytical Centre, Ukraine
Published: June 2023

The problem of assessing the health of schoolchildren and general monitoring of its condition has always been among the most urgent, especially for those living in radioactively contaminated areas. Prolonged exposure to incorporated long-lived radionuclides leads to the development of serious pathological processes in the body. In this regard, special attention should be paid to integrative systems, in particular, to the state of the cardiovascular system, diseases of which are the cause of most deaths of the adult population in the Chernobyl regions. The study of the adaptive reserves of the cardiovascular system of each child and its timely correction should be considered as the basis for managing the health of the younger generation. The purpose of the study was to assess the adaptive capacity of the cardiovascular system of schoolchildren living near the Chernobyl nuclear power plant. The methodology of the study is based on the evaluation by mathematical and statistical methods of the results of anthropometric, physiometric and radiometric examination of 1139 schoolchildren aged 6-17 years, received in the course of the international socio-medical project of the European Commission "Health and Ecological Programs around the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone: Development, training and coordination of health-related projects". Results. It was revealed that in most of the examined children, the functional reserves and adaptive capabilities of the circulatory system were significantly reduced. The level of the functional reserve of the cardiovascular system in most of the examined children was below average (Ruffier’s index = 10.0-14.99) or low (Ruffier’s index ≥ 15.0). Among children with disharmonious high physical development, the largest number of cases of low functional reserve of the circulatory system was registered. The level of the calculated adaptive potential showed that among children with disharmonious low physical development or harmonious physical development, cases of tension of adaptation mechanisms of the cardiovascular system were most common, while among children with disharmonious high physical development, aged 6-11.11 years, cases of unsatisfactory adaptation prevailed, and among children aged 12-17 years – cases of failure of adaptation mechanisms. The measured specific activity of 137Cs (Bq/kg) in the body of schoolchildren with disharmonious high physical development was statistically significantly less than in children with underweight and harmoniously developed. It was concluded that the violation of the adaptive capacity of the circulatory system in school-age children living near the Chernobyl nuclear power plant occurs under conditions of constant incorporation of 137Cs radionuclides into their body. One of the reasons for violations of the adaptive reserves of the cardiovascular system in children is an increase in their body weight associated with genetic, metabolic, alimentary factors, as well as physical inactivity. When assessing the physical development and adaptive capabilities of the cardiovascular system in children living in the territory affected by the Chernobyl accident, in addition to anthropometric indicators, Ruffier’s indices and adaptive potential, one should take into account the folate cycle genotype, the level of homocysteine in the blood, and the specific activity of 137Cs in the body.