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Supplemental Digital Content is available in the text Objective: Examine extent of peer-reviewed literature exploring human health effects of hydraulic fracturing (HVHF). Methods: A scoping review methodology was used to examine peer-reviewed studies published from 2000 through 2017 that empirically examine direct health impacts of hydraulic fracturing. Results: Through September 2017, only 18 studies were found published in peer-reviewed journals that met our requirements for inclusion in the review. Most of these studies resulted in positive or mixed findings of health outcomes. Conclusions: The paucity of studies reflects the difficulty in drawing direct connections between HVHF and human health outcomes. Many health outcomes may take years to emerge, exposure often occurs in lightly populated rural areas with older, poorer, and sicker residents, and diagnosis is difficult without physician knowledge of prior exposure. Primary care providers should record thorough histories to help guide future treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background Environmental microbial exposure and human gut microbiota play a role in development of the immune system and susceptibility to food allergy. Pacifier use has been inconsistently associated with allergy, but the association between sanitization and food allergy is unknown. We investigated the association between infant pacifier use, with a consideration of sanitization, and food allergy at age 1 in the Barwon Infant Study (BIS). Methods Questionnaire data were collected prospectively from pregnant mothers from the Barwon region of south-east Australia at baseline and at infant ages 1, 6, and 12 months. Pacifier sanitization was defined as the joint exposure of a pacifier and cleaning methods (antiseptic, mouth, tap water, boiling). Challenge-proven food allergy was determined at age 1. Results Any pacifier use at 6 months was associated with food allergy (aOR, 1.94; 95% CI, 1.04-3.61), but not at other ages. This overall association was driven by the joint exposure pacifier-antiseptic use (aOR, 5.90; 95% CI, 2.18-15.97) compared to no pacifier use. Among pacifier users, pacifier-antiseptic was still associated with food allergy (aOR, 3.88; 95% CI, 1.55-9.72) when compared to pacifier-no antiseptic use. Further, increased use of pacifier-antiseptic at 0, 1 or 2 interviews over the first 6 months was associated with higher food allergy risk (ptrend=0.005). Conclusions Joint exposure to antiseptics and pacifiers at 6 months increased the odds of food allergy, showing a trend with increased use over time. Key messages This is the first report of pacifiers used with antiseptic being positively associated with challenge-proven food allergy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]