Electronic cigarettes consumption and associated factors among general population in Western Saudi Arabia

Background: In recent years, consumption of E-cigarettes has increased dramatically. Several studies have focused on the prevalence of E-cigarettes among specific groups of people, using it as a substitute to traditional cigarettes, or the participant knowledge regarding risks. This research was aimed on E-cigarettes’ prevalence and its association to several factors in the general population of Western Saudi Arabia. Design and Methods: Using an observational cross-sectional study, data were collected from (n=465) above 18 years old smokers during the survey at public attractions. A validated self-administered questionnaire acquired from previous studies was employed to insure the suitability for the general population of Jeddah Saudi Arabia. Sample size was calculated via Raosoft@ and adults of either gender were included in the study. Descriptive or inferential statistical analysis was performed using SPSS. Results: The preponderance of e-cigarette smokers used entertainment as the reason for smoking, with an average of (33.9%). Although one reason for e-cigarette consumption was to cease traditional smoking, results showed an average of (49.4%), which is the majority of those who attempted to cease traditional smoking via e-cigarette, did not succeed in quitting traditional smoking. This study also demonstrated that participant that believed that e-cigarette is beneficial had a higher chance to cease conventional smoking than who did not (32.1% versus 14.6%) which is significant (p<0.001). Conclusions: In conclusion, this study estimated the prevalence of e-cigarette consumption among the population of Jeddah, Saudi Arabia along with assessment of elements which help increase the overall e-cigarette consumption in Jeddah

Assessment of autologous serum skin test in chronic idiopathic urticaria

Background: In the vast majority of patients with chronic urticaria , the etiology is unknown. It has been noted that in one third of such patients it has an autoimmune base. Autologous serum skin test (ASST) is currently the best in vivo test for the detection of such patients. Our aim was to identify the prevalence of positive ASST among patients with chronic idiopathic urticaria (CIU) and to compare features of ASST + and ASST – groups. Methods: this study was done on 79 patients with CIU. Samples of 0.05ml of autologous serum and normal saline were separately injected intradermaly into the volar aspect of right and left forearm respectively. ASST Was deemed to be positive if a serum induced weal had a diameter bigger than a sailin induced response by < 1.5 mm was seen at 30min. Also we compare the clinical and laboratory parameters of ASST+ and ASST - groups.Results: Out of 79 patients with CIU, 39 patients (39%) had positive ASST and it was found that the frequency of attacks was higher in these patients (P=0.04). Conclusion: Significant percent of patients with CIU showed positive response to ASST which is most likely an autoimmune source for them. ASST can be used as a simple and cost - effective test for the detection of these patients, which has proven to be a therapeutic challenge to the treating physician

HRM and TQM: association with job involvement

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to examine the perceptions of individual employees on the influence of eight elements of HRM/TQM (i.e. leadership, training and development, employee participation, reward and recognition, customer focus, empowerment, teamwork, and communication) on employees' job involvement in six major Malaysian semiconductor contract manufacturing organizations. Despite extensive research and voluminous literature on HRM/TQM, very little empirical research has examined this scope of investigative study. Therefore, the hypotheses are developed with the intention of examining this relationship. Design/methodology/approach - Original researches using self-completed questionnaires, distributed to employees within these organizations, are thoroughly reported. The study sample consisted of 377 employees, resulting in a response rate of 75.4 percent. A questionnaire developed by Kanungo was used for ascertaining the level of overall job involvement. Data were analyzed by employing correlation and multiple regression analysis. Findings - The results of this study revealed that teamwork, empowerment, customer focus, reward and recognition and communication are positively associated with employees' job involvement. Where empowerment was found to be a dominant practice, strong associations with employees' job involvement existed. Originality/value - This study contributes in advancing the HRM/TQM research literature to a better understanding of the association between HRM/TQM and employees' job involvement within the context of the Malaysian semiconductor sector

A REVIEW ON LITERATURES IN PLANNING AND MANAGING OF ISLAMIC WEALTH DISTRIBUTION (2001-2013)

One of the roles of planning and managing wealth distribution is to avoid assets from continuously remain frozen. Thus, managing and planning Islamic wealth distribution is an important attempt in order to make sure Muslims community is well protected. There are various types of instruments applied in managing and planning wealth distribution that follows Shariah rules. Thus, the objective of this article is to examine the related literatures in planning and managing of Islamic wealth distribution between years 2001-2013. The methodology of this article is through qualitative research based on document-analysis on previous articles and literatures on Islamic wealth distribution. Data from each articles related in this field were collected and statistically analyzed using the Statistical Product & Service Solution (SPSS) software. This study looked at variables which include authorship patterns, number of articles published, author productivity, geographical affiliation and subject area patterns. The general finding in this article shows that there are still limited number of articles and papers published by the researchers related to this field. Henceforth, this article provides significant suggestions and strategies for the future exploration on planning and managing Islamic wealth distribution