A century of oil and gas exploration in Albania: assessment of Naturally Occurring Radioactive Materials (NORMs).

The Naturally Occurring Radioactive Materials (NORMs) that are potentially generated from oil and gas extractions in Albania have been disposed of without regulations for many decades, and therefore, an extensive survey in one of the most productive regions (Vlora-Elbasan) was performed. A total of 52 gamma ray spectrometry measurements of soil, oil-sand, sludge, produced water and crude oil samples were performed. We discovered that relatively low activity concentrations of (226)Ra, (228)Ra, (228)Th and (40)K, with concentrations of 23±2Bq/kg, 23±2Bq/kg, 24±3Bq/kg and 549±12Bq/kg, respectively, came from the oil-sands produced by the hydrocarbon extraction of the molasses formations. The mineralogical characterizations and the (228)Ra/(40)K and (226)Ra/(40)K ratios of these Neogene deposits confirmed the predictions of the geological and geodynamic models of a dismantling of the Mesozoic source rocks. The average activity concentrations (±standard deviations) of the radium isotopes ((226)Ra and (228)Ra) and of the (228)Th and (40)K radionuclides in soil samples were 20±5Bq/kg, 25±10Bq/kg, 25±9Bq/kg and 326±83Bq/kg, respectively. Based on the measurements in this study, the future radiological assessments of other fields in the region should be strategically planned to focus on the oil-sands from the molasses sediments. Disequilibrium in the (228)Ra decay segment was not observed in the soil, sludge or oil-sand samples within the standard uncertainties. After a detailed radiological characterization of the four primary oil fields, we concluded that the outdoor absorbed dose rate never exceeded the worldwide population weighted average absorbed dose rate in outdoor air from terrestrial gamma radiation.

First characterisation of natural radioactivity in building materials manufactured in Albania.

This study focuses on the radiological characterisation of building materials manufactured in Albania by using a high-resolution gamma-ray spectrometer. The average activity concentrations of (40)K, (226)Ra and (232)Th were, respectively, 644.1±64.2, 33.4 ± 6.4 and 42.2 ± 7.6 Bq kg(-1) in the clay brick samples and 179.7 ± 48.9, 55.0 ± 5.8 and 17.0 ± 3.3 Bq kg(-1) in the cement samples. The calculated activity concentration index (ACI), varied from 0.48±0.02 to 0.63±0.04 in the clay brick samples and from 0.29±0.03 to 0.37±0.02 in the cement samples. Based on the ACI, all of the clay brick and cement samples were categorised as A1 materials. The authors can exclude (at 3σ level) any restriction of their use as bulk materials.

A new FSA approach for in situ γ ray spectroscopy.

An increasing demand of environmental radioactivity monitoring comes both from the scientific community and from the society. This requires accurate, reliable and fast response preferably from portable radiation detectors. Thanks to recent improvements in the technology, γ spectroscopy with sodium iodide scintillators has been proved to be an excellent tool for in-situ measurements for the identification and quantitative determination of γ ray emitting radioisotopes, reducing time and costs. Both for geological and civil purposes not only (40)K, (238)U, and (232)Th have to be measured, but there is also a growing interest to determine the abundances of anthropic elements, like (137)Cs and (131)I, which are used to monitor the effect of nuclear accidents or other human activities. The Full Spectrum Analysis (FSA) approach has been chosen to analyze the γ spectra. The Non Negative Least Square (NNLS) and the energy calibration adjustment have been implemented in this method for the first time in order to correct the intrinsic problem related with the χ(2) minimization which could lead to artifacts and non physical results in the analysis. A new calibration procedure has been developed for the FSA method by using in situ γ spectra instead of calibration pad spectra. Finally, the new method has been validated by acquiring γ spectra with a 10.16 cm × 10.16 cm sodium iodide detector in 80 different sites in the Ombrone basin, in Tuscany. The results from the FSA method have been compared with the laboratory measurements by using HPGe detectors on soil samples collected particular, the (137)Cs isotopes has been implemented in the analysis since it has been found not negligible during the in-situ measurements.

Radiology turf wars and antitrust law.

Nonradiologist health care providers have enjoyed the privilege of film interpretation without the assistance of radiologists. However, encroachment on the radiologist's turf of radiological image interpretation by nonradiologist physicians and radiographer technicians is reminiscent of recent antitrust battles between anesthesiologists and nurse anesthetists. Numerous antitrust issues are relevant to radiology; however, the scope of this article is limited to antitrust issues most relevant to radiology turf battles. Such battles often raise antitrust issues of group boycotts, tying arrangements, and exclusive contracts.

Reuse of single-use medical devices: informed consent and physician liability.

This overview addresses the controversial practice of reuse and reprocessing of single-use medical devices and the issues this practice raises for physician liability. Specifically, we describe the health risks associated with medical device reprocessing, analyze the market costs arising from the reuse and reprocessing of single-use medical devices, and discuss physician liability for failure to obtain informed consent of the patient for the use of reprocessed single-use medical devices.

Intravenous corticotrophin vs. hydrocortisone in the treatment of hospitalized patients with Crohn's disease: a randomized double-blind study and follow-up.

Adrenocorticotrophic hormone (ACTH) and corticosteroids have no maintenance values for inflammatory bowel disease but serve to reduce the severity of disease. The effectiveness of intravenous corticotrophin versus hydrocortisone in ulcerative colitis has been determined including whether previous steroid therapy influenced the better response to one rather than the other, but no such studies have ever been done in Crohn's disease. Eighty-eight patients hospitalized with moderate-to-severe Crohn's disease (Present-Korelitz [P-K] Index -3 to -2 and the International Organisation for the Study of Inflammatory Bowel Disease-Crohn's & Colitis Foundation of America [IOIBD-CCFA] Index, mean 14, range 5-23) were treated in a prospective, randomized, double-blind clinical trial to receive either continuous intravenous infusion of 120 U/day of ACTH (44 patients) or hydrocortisone 300 mg/day (44 patients). Patients were also subdivided into those who received oral steroids during the 30 days prior to intravenous therapy and those who had not. Response was followed on a daily basis and tabulated at 3, 5, and 10 days. Patients were followed from 1-3 years to determine the later status. After 10 days of intravenous therapy 36 of 44 patients (82%) who received ACTH and 41 of 44 patients (93%) who received hydrocortisone fully responded (P-K index +3 and IOIBD-CCFA Index mean of 3). At the end of the study, response to intravenous ACTH and hydrocortisone was not statistically different whether or not patients received oral steroids during the 30 days prior to admission, although the response to IV ACTH tended to be faster at 3 days in those who had received previous steroid therapy. Intravenous ACTH and hydrocortisone are equally effective in achieving therapeutic goals in patients with Crohn's disease who have not achieved results with oral medications. Moreover the response rate was high (mean 88%), serving to buy time for establishment of successful maintenance programs of treatment with oral 5-ASA and immunosuppressive drugs for 69% of patients at 1-3 years.

Subunit interactions in the Na,K-ATPase explored with the yeast two-hybrid system.

Subunit interactions of the alpha1- and beta1-subunits of the chicken Na,K-ATPase were explored with the yeast two-hybrid system. Gal4-fusion proteins containing domains of the alpha1- and beta1-subunits were designed for examining both intersubunit and intrasubunit protein-protein interactions. Regions of the alpha- and beta-subunits known to be involved in alpha-beta-subunit assembly were positive in two-hybrid assay, supporting the validity of the assays. A library of beta-subunit ectodomains with C-terminal truncations was screened to find the maximal truncation retaining an interaction with the alpha-subunit extracellular H7H8 loop (where H7 refers to the seventh membrane span, and so on). The maximal truncation removed all the cysteines involved in disulfide bridges, leaving only 63 amino acids of the beta-subunit ectodomain. Scanning alanine mutagenesis led to identification of an evolutionarily conserved sequence of four amino acids (SYGQ) in the extracellular H7H8 loop of the alpha-subunit that is crucial to alpha-beta-intersubunit interactions. Oligomerization studies with single domains failed to detect self-association of either of the two large cytosolic loops (H2H3 and H4H5) within the alpha-subunit. However, evidence was found for an interaction between these two cytoplasmic loops.

The role of leukopenia in the 6-mercaptopurine-induced remission of refractory Crohn's disease.

OBJECTIVES: 1) to determine the frequency of induced leukopenia in patients with refractory Crohn's disease treated with 6-Mercaptopurine (6-MP). 2) to determine the influence of 6-MP-induced leukopenia on achieving remission [including the three major specific goals of therapy: (a) elimination or reduction of steroids, (b) healing of abscesses and fistulas, and (c) elimination of recurrent intestinal obstruction] and the effect on the rate and percentage of improvement in the CCFA-IOIBD index of Crohn's disease activity after 3 months of 6-MP therapy. 3) to determine whether an improvement of leukopenia was accomplished by an increased risk of clinical bone marrow depression. METHODS: We reviewed the course of 98 consecutive patients with refractory Crohn's disease treated with 6-MP and compared the 51 who developed leukopenia and the 47 who did not, in regard to achievement of remission, length of time until remission, rate of recurrence, and time until recurrence. RESULTS: 1) The mean time to remission was 8.8 wk for patients with leukopenia versus 14.3 wk for those without leukopenia. 2) A strong positive correlation exists between 6-MP induced leukopenia and the achievement and maintenance of remission in refractory Crohn's disease. This was evident in the analysis of response in specific goals and in the activity index. 3) There was no clinical evidence of bone marrow suppression in the 51 patients who developed 6-MP induced leukopenia. CONCLUSIONS: 1) Increasing the dose of 6-MP in patients with refractory Crohn's disease who have not yet responded and who have not achieved leukopenia will very likely increase the efficacy of this drug. 2) Influenced by the results of this study, we have launched a double-blind prospective study to evaluate the relationship between the induction of leukopenia with 6-MP and the achievement of remission.