UK public offered urine tests after death of ex-Russian agent » Health » 24dash.com

Urine tests will be offered to people who fear they may have come into contact with ex-Russian spy Alexander Litvinenko, the Health Protection Agency said today.

The agency is asking anyone who was in the restaurant or hotel bar where Mr Litvinenko went on November 1 to contact NHS Direct.

They will be screened using a questionnaire to find anyone who may have been in contact with him or the food he ate.

An HPA spokeswoman said: "We expect that we are going to do tests and we expect that they are going to be negative and we have no reason to think customers are at risk."

In a statement today the HPA said it had decided to update its advice in the light of further assessments.

It asked for anyone who was in the Itsu sushi restaurant in Piccadilly, central London, or in the Pine Bar of the Millennium Hotel, Grosvenor Square to contact NHS Direct on 0845 4647.

The agency also said that the chief medical officer Sir Liam Donaldson was issuing advice to GPs and hospitals on the risks and clinical implications of exposure to Polonium-210.

This was the radioactive substance which poisoned Mr Litvinenko and was also found in a "small number of areas" at the restaurant and hotel as well as the former KGB officer's home in Muswell Hill, north London.

The statement added: "We want to reassure the public that the risk of having been exposed to this substance remains low.

"It can only represent a radiation hazard if it is taken into the body - by breathing it in, by taking it into the mouth, or if it gets into a wound.

"It is not a radiological hazard as long as it remains outside the body. Most traces of it can be eliminated through handwashing, or washing machine and dishwasher cycles.

"The Agency is also investigating the clinical areas of the two hospitals where Mr Litvinenko was treated."

The advice being issued by Sir Liam was in case people presented to doctors fearing they had been contaminated.

Mr Litvinenko's friend Alex Goldfarb, asked about how his family were, told BBC News 24: "It's a devastating experience for them, particularly now they know how it happened, particularly knowing now he was doomed from the start.

"It is like being exposed to Chernobyl but not from outside but within."

Professor Roger Cox of the HPA told Sky News: "The overall situation is that our current assessments lead us to believe that the vast majority of individuals who might consider themselves to have been exposed will be subject to insignificant doses by this sort of contamination.

"There may be a few individuals where higher exposures might have been experienced and this sampling and analysis procedure that we're putting into place should allow us to both identify the extent of the problem but I think as importantly provide some reassurance to those that are currently worried about their circumstances."

Professor Cox added: "We are clearly taking this extremely seriously. There is a lot of radioactivity involved."

The concern was that blood, urine or faeces from Mr Litvinenko would have "in some way been picked up through perhaps poor hygiene and ingested by somebody else and would have given them an internal dose".

Analysis of urine samples would be prioritised for those where it was feared the "highest exposure levels might be".

Results would be obtained at the earliest "some time during next week", he said.

Yesterday a statement by Mr Litvinenko, composed before he died, accused Russian president Vladimir Putin of having him poisoned.

"You have shown yourself to be as barbaric and ruthless as your most hostile critics have claimed," he said.

"You may succeed in silencing one man, but the howl of protest from around the world will reverberate, Mr Putin, in your ears for the rest of your life.

"May God forgive you for what you have done, not only to me, but to beloved Russia and its people."

Mr Litvinenko's tearful father Walter blamed the Russian security services for the death of his "courageous" son.

He said "a terrible thing" had happened and accused Mr Putin's government of being behind his son's death.

"My son died and he was killed by a little tiny nuclear bomb," he said.

Mr Litvinenko's wife, Marina, 44, and 12-year-old son, Anatole, have been left "completely devastated" by his death.

But speaking for the first time about the affair, Mr Putin said: "As far as I understand from the medical statement, it does not say this was the result of violence - this was not a violent death."

Scotland Yard's counter terrorism unit, led by Deputy Assistant Commissioner Peter Clarke, is heading an investigation into Mr Litvinenko's poisoning.

Senior Government ministers and security officials have held several meetings of Cobra, the Government's emergency planning committee, to discuss the affair.

Home Secretary John Reid disclosed in a statement yesterday that the death of Mr Litvinenko was "linked to the presence of a radioactive substance in his body".

In a statement Mr Clarke, the head of Scotland Yard's Counter Terrorism Command, said: "Detectives investigating the death of Alexander Litvinenko have been told that the radioactive substance polonium 210 has been found in his body.

"The material was identified following extensive tests by forensic toxicologists.

"We continue to carry out a thorough investigation into the circumstances surrounding Mr Litvinenko's death.

"Detectives are carrying out an intensive investigation. We will trace possible witnesses, examine Mr Litvinenko's movements at relevant times, including when he first became ill, and identify people he may have met. There will also be an extensive examination of CCTV footage."

No arrests have been made in connection with the inquiry.

The post mortem examination on Mr Litvinenko's body has been delayed while a risk assessment is carried out to see if it is safe to perform the procedure, and if so, what precautions are necessary.

The inquest into his death will open at some point in the coming days at St Pancras Coroner's Court in north London.

The Foreign Office said it had discussed the issue with Russian diplomats.

But a spokeswoman denied reports that it had informed Moscow it was being treated as a "serious matter".

A large quantity of alpha radiation from polonium 210 was detected in Mr Litvinenko's urine apparently just a few hours prior to his death in University College Hospital on Thursday night.

The HPA has admitted the apparent poisoning was an "unprecedented" situation.

The Cobra committee met again today to discuss the handling of the affair, including the latest appeal by the HPA.

It was chaired by Home Office minister Tony McNulty and included officials from his department, the Department of Health, the Foreign Office, the HPA and police.

Meetings of Cobra are held to be able to bring all the relevant experts and government officials together to be able to take decisions as quickly as possible.

A Cabinet Office spokesman would not comment when asked about the Russian response to a request for assistance from the Foreign Office.

It was understood that the delayed post mortem examination on Mr Litvinenko would not be held today.

The Conservatives said they would be asking for a Commons statement from the Government over the affair on Monday.

Shadow Home Secretary David Davis called on all those concerned, including if necessary the Russian authorities, to cooperate with the police investigation.

He said: "I am sure that there will be an intensive police investigation into the murder of Alexander Litvinenko and it is important that there is full cooperation from anyone who may be able to help with their enquiries including, if they are asked, from the Russian authorities.

"It is essential that other dissidents living in Britain are reassured about their safety and there are also questions about how polonium 210 came to be used in Britain."

Copyright Press Association 2006.