To date, the College of Radiology (CoR) does not see any clear benefit in performing whole body screening computed tomography (CT) examinations in healthy asymptomatic individuals. There are radiation risk issues in CT and principles of screening should be adhered to. There may be a role for targeted cardiac screening CT that derives calcium score, especially for asymptomatic medium-risk individuals and CT colonography when used as part of a strategic programme for colorectal cancer screening in those 50 years and older. However, population based screening CT examinations may become appropriate when evidence emerges regarding a clear benefit for the patient outweighing the associated radiation risks.

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Uranium concentration was estimated in urine samples of three age groups, G1≤ 30 years, n=28, G2 age range of 31-40 years, n=28, and G3 of age > 40 years, n=32, using two types of detectors CR-39 and LR-115 solid-state nuclear track detector (SSNTD) for results comparison.      Results showed that uranium mean level values for CR-39 were 1.961 ±0.08 µg/L, 1.810 ±0.09 µg/L and 1.814 ±0.076 µg/L for G1, G2 and G3 respectively, while the mean values of uranium concentration using LR-115 were 0.972 ±0.07 µg/L, 0.922 ±0.07 µg/L and 1.018 ±0.08 µg/L in G1, G2 and G3 respectively, with significant statistical difference between the results of CR-39 and LR-115 for each age group.      Mean level values for females was 2.023± 0.09 µg/L and 1.813± 0.05 µg/L for males using CR-39 and it was 1.105± 0.09 µg/L for females and 0.933± 0.04 µg/L for males using LR-115, with significant statistical difference between results for each gender. It was concluded that  G1 ≤ 30 years have the highest uranium pollution, noting that females were more polluted with uranium than males.

In this study, 88 healthy adults in Al-Najaf governorate of Iraq have been divided into three groups according to the type of exposure to radiation including environmentally uranium exposures n=29 (G1), occupationally exposures n=27 (G2), and non-uranium exposures n=32 (G3). All groups were subjected for estimation of uranium concentration in urine samples using CR-39 SSNTD method beside measurement of urine concentrations of 8-OHdG compound as a biomarker for oxidative DNA damage using Elisa technique. Reactive oxygen species produced under the effect of many causes including ionizing radiation exposure, (0 H)free radical induced the formation of 8-OHdG compound from cellular and mitochondrial DNA through attack of C-8 in purine ring of guanine base. The results showed that mean values of uranium concentration were (1.836±0.426 μg/L), (2.02±0.404 μg/L) and (1.755± 0.437 μg/L) for group1, group2 and group3, respectively. While mean values for 8-OHdG were (49.810±15.484 ng/ml), (47.717±14.232ng/ml) and (46.769±14.249ng/ml) for the three groups, respectively. No significant statistical differences were recorded between all data obtained. These results suggested the presence of uranium pollution in all groups including the non-exposed group as compared with reference value of (WHO, 2004). Results also demonstrate the presence of DNA oxidative damage in all groups according to concentration levels of 8-OHdG in urine samples. Therefore, the uranium pollution in urine samples of the examined groups indicate the presence of chronic low dose radiation source in Najaf governorate, which might be the cause of DNA damage as reflected by the urinary levels of 8-OHdG compound.

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