Assessing arsenic and selenium in a single nail clipping using portable X-ray fluorescence.

The feasibility of measuring arsenic and selenium contents in a single nail clipping was investigated using a small-focus portable X-ray fluorescence (XRF) instrument with monochromatic excitation beams. Nail clipping phantoms supplemented with arsenic and selenium to produce materials with 0, 5, 10, 15, and 20µg/g were used for calibration purposes. In total, 10 different clippings were analyzed at two different measurement positions. Energy spectra were fit with detection peaks for arsenic Kα, selenium Kα, arsenic Kß, selenium Kß, and bromine Kα characteristic X-rays. Data analysis was performed under two distinct conditions of fitting constraint. Calibration lines were established from the amplitude of each of the arsenic and selenium peaks as a function of the elemental contents in the clippings. The slopes of the four calibration lines were consistent between the two conditions of analysis. The calculated minimum detection limit (MDL) of the method, when considering the Kα peak only, ranged from 0.210±0.002µg/g selenium under one condition of analysis to 0.777±0.009µg/g selenium under another. Compared with previous portable XRF nail clipping studies, MDLs were substantially improved for both arsenic and selenium. The new measurement technique had the additional benefits of being short in duration (~3min) and requiring only a single nail clipping. The mass of the individual clipping used did not appear to play a major role in signal strength, but positioning of the clipping is important.

Portable x-ray fluorescence for assessing trace elements in rice and rice products: Comparison with inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry.

Portable x-ray fluorescence (XRF) was investigated as a means of assessing trace elements in rice and rice products. Using five measurement trials of 180 s real time, portable XRF was first used to detect arsenic (As), manganese (Mn), iron (Fe), nickel (Ni), copper (Cu), and zinc (Zn) in a variety of rice samples. The same samples were then microwave-digested and used to determine elemental concentrations using inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). The concentrations of As, Mn, Fe, Cu, and Zn determined by ICP-MS were found to be consistent with other recent studies involving various types of rice and rice products. When assessing for As, Mn, Fe, Cu, and Zn, comparison of results between XRF amplitude and ICP-MS concentration (wet weight) demonstrated a linear relationship with a significant correlation. A significant correlation between XRF amplitude and ICP-MS concentration was not found when assessing for Ni.

Sexuality and intimacy after gynecological cancer.

Matters of sexuality and intimacy greatly impact quality of life of patients with gynecologic cancers. Vast amount of evidence exists showing that cancer dramatically impacts woman's sexuality, sexual functioning, intimate relationships and sense of self. Sexual functioning can be affected by illness, pain, anxiety, anger, stressful circumstances and medications. There is a growing acknowledgement that these needs are not being appropriately addressed by providers. With improvements in early detection, surgery and adjuvant therapy for gynecologic cancer, long term survival and cure are becoming possible. Quality of life is thus becoming a major issue for patients. Patients suffer from hot flashes, difficulty sleeping, loss of libido and intimacy, all resulting in significant morbidity and loss of quality of life. Using hormone replacement therapy in gynecologic cancer survivors is a topic a great debate. While limited studies are available to date, retrospective cohort reviews show no reported differences in overall or disease-free survival in patients using hormone replacements vs. controls in patients with ovarian cancer, endometrial cancer, cervical, vaginal or vulva cancer. Since safety of using HRT remains controversial and prospective studies are lacking, providers need to be able to provide alternatives to HRT. Centrally acting agents such as antiseizure agent gabapentin and selective serotonine re-uptake inhibitors, such as venlafaxine and fluoxitine have been demonstrated to show effectiveness in treating vasomotor symptoms and are easily tolerated. To address cardiovascular and osteoporosis risks of post-menopausal status, exercise, healthy diet, bisphosphonates, raloxifen and statins have been found to be effective. Psychotherapy plays an essential part in management of these issues. Review of the literature reveals recent trends among health psychologists to utilize psychoeducational interventions that include combined elements of cognitive and behavioral therapy with education and mindfulness training. Intervention studies have found positive effects from this approach, particularly within the areas of arousal, orgasm, satisfaction, overall well-being, and decreased depression. Many of patients' issues are easy to address with either hormonal, non-hormonal or psychotherapy modifications. The essential part of success is the providers appreciation of this serous problem and willingness and comfort in addressing it.

Sexual body esteem and mindfulness in college women.

Literature suggests that many young women hold negative perceptions of their sexual bodies and facial features. This may be related to deficits in mindfulness, manifested by rigid and automatic thoughts, feelings, and behavior about one's sexual body. The present study examined the relationships between the five factors of mindfulness measured by the Five Factor Mindfulness Questionnaire (FFMQ) and sexual body esteem, measured by the Sexual Attractiveness subscale of the Body Esteem Scale (BES) in 79 college women. A multiple regression was performed to examine the relationship between sexual body esteem and the factors of mindfulness. The Observing and Describing subscales were significantly and positively predictive of sexual body esteem while Non-reactivity to Inner Experience was significantly and negatively predictive of sexual body esteem. This relationship may have implications for future research and clinical practice.