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Abstract Background-A study was undertaken to investigate the effect of gas cooking on the lung function of adolescents while considering serum IgE level as a possible effect modifier. Method-The cross [...]

Abstract Objective--Acute exposure to chlorine causes lung damage, and recovery may proceed slowly for several weeks. The short term respiratory effects of acute chlorine inhalation during a swimming pool accident [...]

Mass gatherings are believed to increase the transmission of infectious diseases although surveillance systems have shown a low impact. The Catholic Jubilee was held in Rome, Italy in 2000. We conducted a case-control study to analyse the risk factors of giardiasis among residents. All diseases reported to the laboratory surveillance system from January 2000 to May 2001 were compared with hospital controls concurrently selected in the same season as cases and frequency-matched for age and birth country. Fifty-two cases (44·1%) and 72 controls were enrolled. In the multivariable analysis factors associated with giardiasis among adults were: travelling abroad (OR 24·2, P>0·01), exposure to surface water (OR 4·80, P=0·05), high educational level (OR 3·8, P=0·03). Having a maid from a high-prevalence country was independently associated (OR 2·3) although not statistically significant. This is the only exposure that changed during the Jubilee.

In the summer of 1999 a cluster of 18 cases of necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) occurred in a University Hospital in Rome, Italy. The cases presented with mild clinical and radiological signs, and none died. Seventy-two per cent had a birth weight of >2500 g, 66·7% had a gestational age of >37 weeks, 30% presented with respiratory diseases and/or hypoglycaemia. All cases occurred within 10 days of birth and between 5 and 7 days after two clusters of diarrhoea (14 cases). The NEC outbreak had two phases; most cases in the first phase occurred in the at-risk unit, whereas those in the second phase occurred in the full-term unit. In the multivariate analysis, invasive therapeutic procedures, pathological conditions and formula feeding were associated with NEC. Although no predominant common bacteria were isolated, we suggest an infective origin of this outbreak.

CD4+ T-lymphocyte (CD4) and platelet counts are good predictors of the 'maturity' of HIV infection and can be used to impute the date of infection/seroconversion in individuals for whom this date is unknown.

The association between indoor environmental factors and respiratory symptoms has been well described among children, but few observations are available among infants. We studied newborns through their first six months with an intensive follow-up to evaluate the occurrence of respiratory symptoms in association with fixed and time-dependent environmental factors.

Background The main route of transmission of the human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) is sexual contact. A high proportion of young adults is exposed to this mode of transmission. Therefore it is important to assess the level of HIV-1 prevalence among 18 year olds in Italy. Methods Available blood samples taken at the physical examination of the military draft visit in Tuscany, Italy, have been tested in an anonymous unliked fashion for HIV-1 infection in 1990 and 1991. Results In the 2 years, 4478 and 4959 men were tested, respectively, representing 91.7% of all subjects included in the draft lists. Prevalence of HIV-1 infection was 1.12 per 1000 (95%CI : 0.36–2.61 per 1000) in 1990 and 0.20 per 1000 (95% CI : 0.01–1.12) In 1991. Conclusions Prevalence of HIV-1 infection In the 18 year old male population In Tuscany is close to or below 1/1000. Evidence of the presence of HIV-1 Infection in this population should prompt the implementation of adequate prevention programmes among adolescents.

A total of 213 subjects from a community in Italy of immigrants from Somalia and other NE African countries were enrolled in this study to evaluate the prevalence of HAV, HBV, HCV and HDV infections and to assess their possible risk factors. Of the subjects, 45 per cent (96) were female and 24 per cent (52) were under 12 years old. The age range was from 1 to 67 years and the mean age was 24 years. Eighty−three per cent (177 subjects) were born in Somalia, 10 per cent (21 subjects) in Ethiopia, and the rest in Djibouti, Egypt or Saudi Arabia. The 213 subjects were administered a questionnaire which covered socio−demographic characteristics and risk factors resulting from Western medical practice, traditional medicine, personal behaviour and living conditions. Blood was drawn from 209 subjects to ascertain the presence of HbsAg, HBeAg, antiHAV, anti−HBc, anti−HBs, anti-HCV and anti−HDV. The results of this study show an HAV prevalence of 96 per cent (an 87.5 per cent prevalence in children under 12), and an HBV prevalence of 32 per cent (a 3.3 per cent prevalence of HBsAg carriers). No subject under 11 was HBV positive and no woman tested positive for HBeAg, confirming the extreme unlikelihood of vertical transmission of HBV. The prevalence of HBV is closely correlated with age (ranging from 2 per cent in those under 12 to 59 per cent in subjects over 39). Of the risk factors for hepatitis B, chronic ulcers, frequent visits to the barber and the dentist, having been in boarding school and having been through more than two African countries before coming to Italy emerged as particularly significant. Among the subjects from Somalia there was a significantly lower HBV prevalence in those from Mogadishu than in those from the rest of the country (OR=2.04, 95 per cent Cl=0.93–4.5). HCV prevalence was 2 per cent (five cases). It was restricted to subjects over 25, and there was no significant gender prevalence. Of the antiHBc−positive subjects, no one tested positive for HDV. As the final stage of the study, HBV vaccine was made available to HBV-negative subjects, with particular attention to children under 12.

Abnormal pulmonary function tests and childhood asthma have been suggested as long term sequelae of Low Birth Weight (LBW) (<2,500 g) (Am Rev Respir Dis 1990; 142:555-562). In order to study whether LBW was associated to childhood asthma, we analyzed the data of a cross-sectional survey in 2929 schoolchildren aged 6-11, randomly selected from three areas of the Lazio region, Italy, Overall LBW rate was 4.9%: LBW was positively associated to childhood asthma (Odds Ratio 2.37; 95% c.i. 1.41-3.95). A multivariate analysis was carried out to adjust the effect of LBW for other known determinants of childhood asthma: sex, maternal age at birth, child age, neonatal feeding practice, parental smoking, socio economic status, area of residence and atopy in parents and sibs. The adjusted OR was 2.39 (95% c.i. 1.41-4.04), practically identical to the unadjusted estimate. Our findings suggest that LBW is a major determinant of childhood asthma: suboptimal intrauterine conditions may have long term consequences for respiratory growth and function even if they do not lead to overt neonatal respiratory difficulties.