Intention to return to the town of Tomioka in residents 7 years after the accident at Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station: a cross-sectional study

The aim of our study was to identify the factors associated with intention to return (ITR) in residents of Tomioka town, Fukushima Prefecture. We contacted approximated 8000 residents aged 20 years or older who lived in Tomioka. We invited them to take part in a written survey on ITR. In all, 1749 residents’ replies were included in the analysis. We asked about ITR in former residents of Tomioka town. We also asked about relevant factors and about risk perception in relation to the health effects of radiation exposure. Of those contacted, 469 (26.8%) had an ITR. Logistic regression analysis revealed that being male (OR = 1.6, 95% Cl: 1.24–1.96, P < 0.001), the anticipation of improving shopping in the town (OR = 1.5, 95% Cl: 1.26–1.67, P < 0.001) and requests for individual consultation with experts on the health effects of radiation (OR = 2.7, 95% Cl: 2.10–3.48, P <0.001) were associated with the ITR (+), and living with children under 18 years of age (OR = 0.7, 95% Cl: 0.51–0.95, P = 0.023), reluctance to drink tap water (OR = 0.5, 95% Cl: 0.36–0.69, P < 0.001) and anxiety regarding genetic effects of radiation in the next generation (OR = 0.6, 95% Cl: 0.45–079, P <0.001) were associated with the ITR (-) to Tomioka town, independent of other covariates. To allay the anxieties of residents who have an ITR to their hometown, careful risk communication, including information on the potential effects of radiation on health, is important.