Zaid Q. Ababneh

Perceptions of hookah smoking harmfulness: predictors and characteristics among current hookah users

IntroductionTobacco cigarette smoking a well-known cause of cancer and other diseases. Hookah smoking is another form of tobacco use that has rapidly spread in the United State and Europe. This study assessed beliefs about the harmfulness of smoking hookah.MethodsWe surveyed hookah users in all cafes that provided hookah to its customers in downtown San Diego, California and nearby areas. A total of 235 hookah users participated in this study.ResultsAverage age of study participants was 22 years, 57% were males, and 72% were not cigarette smokers. Whites were more likely to use hookah than the other ethnic groups (33%), older hookah users (26-35 years) were mostly males, and mint flavor of hookah tobacco was the most popular among a wide variety of flavors (23%). There was no significant difference in gender in relation to the wrong perception that hookah is less harmful than cigarettes, but those of Asian ethnicity were much less likely than other ethnic groups to believe that hookah is less harmful than cigarettes. More frequent users of hookah were more likely to believe that hookah is less harmful than cigarettes. The majority of hookah users (58.3%) believe hookah is less harmful than cigarette smoking.DiscussionCompared to cigarettes, there appears to be a lack of knowledge about the harmfulness of smoking hookah among users regardless of their demographic background. Education about the harmfulness of smoking hookah and policies to limit its use should be implemented to prevent the spread of this new form of tobacco use.

Biexponential parameterization of diffusion and T2 relaxation decay curves in a rat muscle edema model: Decay curve components and water compartments

Quantitative T2 relaxation and diffusion imaging studies of a rat muscle edema model were performed in order to determine the effects of intra‐ and extracellular water compartmentation on the respective decay curves. The right hind paw of rats was injected with a carrageenan solution to generate edematous muscle. A Carr–Purcell–Meiboom–Gill (CPMG) imaging sequence was used to acquire T2 relaxation decay curves from both paws. A line scan diffusion imaging (LSDI) sequence was then used to acquire diffusion decay curves from the same paws over a wide b‐factor range. Measurements were made from both edematous muscle (EM) and control muscle (CM). The EM and CM T2 relaxation decay curves were best fit with biexponential functions. The fraction of the fast T2 component dropped dramatically from approximately 0.95 in CM to 0.45 in EM, consistent with a water compartmentation model in which the fast and slow T2 components reflect intra‐ and extracellular water, respectively. Both CM and EM diffusion decay curves required biexponential fitting functions, and the diffusion coefficients of the fast and slow components were substantially larger in EM than CM. The fraction of the fast diffusion component, however, was not radically altered between CM and EM conditions (0.84 versus 0.89 for CM versus EM). Assuming a model in which intra‐ and extracellular water compartments are responsible for the fast and slow T2‐decay components and for the slow and fast diffusion decay components, respectively, leads to fractional sizes of the diffusion components that are not supported by experiment. We conclude that intra‐ and extracellular water compartmentation is a reasonable interpretation for the two T2‐decay components in both CM and EM but that other factors, such as restricted diffusion and/or alternate forms of water compartmentation like surface versus volume water, most probably have profound influences on the precise shapes of the diffusion decay curves, a complete understanding of which will require significant theoretical work. Magn Reson Med, 2005.

Effects of bupivacaine and tetrodotoxin on carrageenan- induced hind paw inflammation in rats (Part 1) : Hyperalgesia, edema, and systemic cytokines

Background:Local anesthetics exert antiinflammatory actions. To elucidate potential mechanisms, the authors examined effects of bupivacaine or tetrodotoxin, administered to rats by ipsilateral or contralateral sciatic blockade or systemically, on carrageenan-induced hind paw hyperalgesia, edema, and stimulated cytokine production in circulating blood cells. Methods:Twelve groups of rats (n = 9–12) received injections in three sites: (1) right or left hind paw (carrageenan or saline), (2) left sciatic block, and (3) systemically (subcutaneously in the upper back). Sciatic and systemic injections were performed with epinephrine plus bupivacaine, tetrodotoxin, or saline; injections were repeated 6 h later. Fifteen hours later, hyperalgesia and/or sensory and motor block were assessed behaviorally, and paw edema was quantified by magnetic resonance imaging. Stimulated production of tumor necrosis factor &agr;, interleukin 10, and interleukin 1&bgr; in whole blood cultures was measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Results:Either ipsilateral or contralateral sciatic blocks using either bupivacaine or tetrodotoxin reduced carrageenan-induced edema and hyperalgesia. Systemic bupivacaine and tetrodotoxin were ineffective in preventing edema and hyperalgesia. Bupivacaine was effective in suppressing systemic tumor necrosis factor &agr; and interleukin 1&bgr; by all three routes, whereas tetrodotoxin was ineffective by all three routes. Conclusion:Bupivacaine and tetrodotoxin, via a contralateral or ipsilateral sciatic block, attenuate local inflammatory edema and hyperalgesia induced by hind paw injection of carrageenan in rats. Mechanisms underlying contralateral effects of sciatic blockade remain unexplained. Bupivacaine inhibits carrageenan-evoked systemic cytokine production by a mechanism not shared by tetrodotoxin; this action may involve tetrodotoxin-resistant sodium channels or a variety of non–sodium-channel targets.

Measurement of natural and artificial radioactivity in powdered milk consumed in Jordan and estimates of the corresponding annual effective dose

The activity concentrations of (40)K, (226)Ra, (228)Ra and (137)Cs were measured for 14 brands of the powdered milk consumed in Jordan, which are imported from various regions around the world. The activity concentrations of (40)K were found not to vary greatly from one brand to the other with an average of 348 +/- 26 Bq kg(-1). However, the activity concentrations of (137)Cs revealed a geographical distribution being: (i) undetected in any of the samples from Argentina, (ii) uniformly distributed in samples from Europe with an average of 0.43 +/- 0.05 Bq kg(-1), and (iii) widely varying in samples from New Zealand (from being not detected (ND) to 1.55 Bq kg(-1)). (226)Ra and (228)Ra were measured above the detection limits in five brands only and displayed relatively low activity concentrations of 0.50-2.14 and 0.78-1.28 Bq kg(-1) for (226)Ra and (228)Ra, respectively. The total average annual effective doses due to intake of (40)K, (226)Ra, (228)Ra and (137)Cs from the ingestion of the powdered milk for infants, children and adults were estimated to be (in microSv): 332, 138 and 43, respectively. These results indicate no significant radiation dose to the public.

In vivo lipid diffusion coefficient measurements in rat bone marrow

The diffusion coefficient of lipids, D(l), within bone marrow, fat deposits and metabolically active intracellular lipids in vivo will depend on several factors including the precise chemical composition of the lipid distribution (chain lengths, degree of unsaturation, etc.) as well as the temperature. As such, D(l) may ultimately prove of value in assessing abnormal fatty acid distributions linked to diseases such as cystic fibrosis, diabetes and coronary heart disease. A sensitive temperature dependence of D(l) may also prove of value for MR-guided thermal therapies for bone tumors or disease within other fatty tissues like the breast. Measuring diffusion coefficients of high molecular weight lipids in vivo is, however, technically difficult for a number of reasons. For instance, due to the much lower diffusion coefficients compared to water, much higher b factors than those used for central nervous system applications are needed. In addition, the pulse sequence design must incorporate, as much as possible, immunity to motion, susceptibility and chemical shift effects present whenever body imaging is performed. In this work, high b-factor line scan diffusion imaging sequences were designed, implemented and tested for D(l) measurement using a 4.7-T horizontal bore animal scanner. The gradient set available allowed for b factors as high as 0.03 micros/nm(2) (30,000 s/mm(2)) at echo times as short as 42 ms. The methods were used to measure lipid diffusion coefficients within the marrow of rat paws in vivo, yielding lipid diffusion coefficients approximately two orders of magnitude smaller than typical tissue water diffusion coefficients. Phantom experiments that demonstrate the sensitivity of lipid diffusion coefficients to chain length and temperature were also performed.

Radioactivity concentrations in soil and vegetables from the northern Jordan Rift Valley and the corresponding dose estimates.

The Jordan Rift Valley (JRV) is considered the food bowl of Jordan, especially during the winter season. In this study, soil and vegetable samples collected from greenhouses in the northern JRV were analysed for their radioactive content. The activity concentrations of (238)U, (235)U, (232)Th, (226)Ra, (137)Cs and (40)K in soil were found to be (+/-SD) 33 +/- 12, 2.2 +/- 0.7, 11.2 +/- 3.3, 40.5 +/- 15.5, 3.5 +/- 1.3 and 156.0 +/- 46.6 (Bq kg(-1)), respectively. In vegetables, the activity concentration of (40)K was found in the range of 698-1439 Bq kg(-1), while those of (226)Ra and (228)Ra were found to be in the range of <0.61-2.56 and <0.69-3.35 Bq kg(-1), respectively. Transfer factors for (40)K were found to be high and ranged from 5 to 8, while those for (226)Ra and (228)Ra were found to be from <0.01 to 0.07 and from <0.09 to 0.42, respectively. The calculated external annual effective dose is found to be within the worldwide range.

ASSESSMENT OF GAMMA-EMITTING RADIONUCLIDES IN SEDIMENT CORES FROM THE GULF OF AQABA, RED SEA

The Gulf of Aqaba is the only seaport in Jordan which currently has intense activities such as industrial development, phosphate ore exportation, oil importation, shipping, commercial and sport fishing. Most of these activities, especially the phosphate ore exportation, could cause serious radiological effects to the marine environment. Thus, it is essential to investigate the level of the radioactivity concentrations to establish a baseline database, which is not available yet in the Gulf of Aqaba. Radioactivity concentrations of gamma-emitting radionuclides in core and beach sediments of the Gulf of Aqaba were investigated. Core sediments were collected from five representative locations for three different water column depths (5, 15 and 35 m). The results showed that the activity concentrations of 238U, 235U and 226Ra for both seafloor and beach sediments from the phosphate loading berth (PLB) location to be higher than those from other investigated locations and more than twice as high as the worldwide average; the 238U activity concentration was found to vary from 57 to 677 Bq kg(-1). The results also showed that there is little variation of radioactivity concentrations within the core length of 15 cm. The calculated mean values of the radium equivalent activity Ra(eq), the external hazard index, H(ex), the absorbed dose rate and the annual effective dose for the beach sediment in PLB location were 626 Bq kg(-1), 1.69, 263 nGy h(-1) and 614 µSv y(-1), respectively. These values are much higher than the recommended limits that impose potential health risks to the workers in this location. As for other studied locations, the corresponding values were far below the maximum recommended limit and lies within the worldwide range.

Dairy cream as a phantom material for biexponential diffusion decay

Commercially available aliquots of dairy cream are shown to have diffusion decay curves characterized by biexponential functions when studied over a wide range of b-factors. The fast and slow diffusion components responsible for the biexponential decay are attributed to water and lipid protons, respectively. The fast diffusion coefficient and relative fast and slow diffusion component fractions obtained from biexponential fits of cream phantoms over a wide range of b-factors up to 3,000 s/mm2 are similar to those obtained previously for brain. The slow diffusion coefficient from lipid protons is smaller than that found in the brain. Overall, however, the results suggest that dairy cream can serve as a widely available phantom material for testing software and hardware components designed to perform quantitative, biexponential diffusion decay studies.

The radioactivity of seasonal dust storms in the Middle East: the May 2012 case study in Jordan

Dust storms in the Middle East are common during spring. Some of these storms are massive and carry a large amount of dust from faraway regions, which pose health and pollution risks. The huge dust storm event occurred in early May, 2012 was investigated for its radioactive content using gamma ray spectroscopy. Dust samples were collected from Northern Jordan and it was found that the storm carried a large amount of both artificial and natural radioactivity. The average activity concentration of fallout (137)Cs was 17.0 Bq/kg which is larger than that found in soil (2.3 Bq/kg), and this enrichment is attributed to particle size effects. (7)Be which is of atmospheric origin and has a relatively short half-life, was detected in dust with relatively large activity concentrations, as it would be expected, with an average of 2860 Bq/kg, but it was not detected in soil. Despite the large activity concentration of (7)Be, dose assessment showed that it does not contribute significantly to the effective dose through inhalation. The concentrations of the primodial nuclides (40)K, (232)Th and (238)U were 547, 30.0 and 49.3 Bq/kg, respectively. With the exception of (40)K, these were comparable to what was found in soil.

Activity Concentrations and Dose Assessment of Gamma Emitting Radionuclides in Canned Tuna and Sardines Produced after the Fukushima Nuclear Accident.

AbstractThe aim of the present work was to investigate the radioactivity concentrations of gamma emitting radionuclides in canned tuna and sardines that were produced after the Fukushima nuclear accident and to assess the resulting radiation doses to the public. Fifty-eight brands of canned tuna and sardines consumed in the Middle East and produced from different parts of the world were analyzed using a germanium detector. Cesium-137 (137Cs) was not detected above the minimum detectable activity in any of the samples. Natural radionuclides 40K, 226Ra and 228Ra were detected with wide activity concentration ranges and with average values of (in Bq kg−1 wet weight): 68 ± 36, 0.31 ± 0.45, 0.34 ± 0.25, respectively, in tuna samples and with averages of 129 ± 67, 0.20 ± 0.33, 0.60 ± 0.31 in sardine samples. The results of the activity concentrations of 40K and 226Ra showed some regional dependence. Tuna samples produced in Europe have almost twice the concentration of 40K and half the concentration of 226Ra as compared to samples produced in either East or South Asia and North America. Moreover, sardine samples produced in North Africa and Europe have almost twice the concentrations of 40K and 226Ra as those produced in East or South Asia and North America. Dose assessment due to ingestion of canned seafood was also performed, and the committed effective dose was found to be well within the worldwide average.