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Copyright of La Medicina del Lavoro is the property of Mattioli 1885 SpA and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The role of genetic and environmental factors, as well as their interaction, in the natural history of asthma, allergic rhinitis and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is largely unknown. This is mainly due to the lack of large-scale analytical epidemiological/genetic studies aimed at investigating these 3 respiratory conditions simultaneously. The GEIRD project is a collaborative initiative designed to collect information on biomarkers of inflammation and oxidative stress, individual and ecological exposures, diet, early-life factors, smoking habits, genetic traits and medication use in large and accurately defined series of asthma, allergic rhinitis and COPD phenotypes. It is a population-based multicase-control design, where cases and controls are identified through a 2-stage screening process (postal questionnaire and clinical examination) in pre-existing cohorts or new samples of subjects. It is aimed at elucidating the role that modifiable and genetic factors play in the occurrence, persistence, severity and control of inflammatory airway diseases, by way of the establishment of a historical multicentre standardized databank of phenotypes, contributed by and openly available to international epidemiologists. Researchers conducting population-based surveys with standardized methods may contribute to the public-domain case-control database, and use the resulting increased power to answer their own scientific questions. Copyright © 2010 S. Karger AG, Basel [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Results from contemporaneous samples of solvents in air obtained using personal sampling pumps connected to activated charcoal tubes and passive dosimeters were compared. Good correlations were found between the data obtained with the two sampling systems for the three main solvents examined: styrene (fibreglass industry), toluene (printing) and -hexane (shoe factory), Less good but statistically significant correlations were obtained for a further six solvents (2-methylpentane, 3-methylpentane, methylcyclopentane, cyclohexane, acetone and ethyl acetate), found together with -hexane. As regards styrene, toluene and -hexane, excellent correlations were also found between daily time-weighted average (TWA) exposures measured using passive dosimeters and corresponding urinary metabolite levels. The data showed that passive dosimeters are reliable and represent a valid alternative to traditional active samplers. Furthermore, passive dosimeters turn out to be particularly advantageous in studies of contemporaneous environmental and biological monitoring as they are less expensive and easier to use than active samplers and allow the collection of more data. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The authors have used computerized digital thermometry for the instrumental diagnosis of Raynaud's phenomenon; such a technique enables them to evaluate the temperature of the ten fingers of the hands separately in baseline conditions, during and after the "cold test:' In baseline conditions the mean digital skin temperature was 31.2°C (SD 1.67) in control subjects and 26.8°C (SD 2.84) in patients suffering from Raynaud's phenomenon (p < 0.001). During the cold test the mean skin temperature decreased to 12.7°C (SD 1.94) in control subjects and to 13.0°C (SD 1.67) in patients (p=n.s.). The mean final skin temperature, at the end of the recovery period after the cold test, was 31.1°C (SD 1.76) in controls and 21.9°C (SD 2.78) in patients (p <0.001). The sensitivity of the computerized digital thermometry was high (63.6% and 92.7% for basal and final temperature, respectively), while the specificity was 100% for both values. In conclusion, computerized digital thermometry is a useful technique for the diagnosing and quantifying the extent of Raynaud's phenomenon. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Twenty-eight patients suffering from either primary or secondary Raynaud's phenomenon were treated with nifedipine and ketanserin. Each patient was treated with one of the two drugs administered after an adequate washout period. Furthermore each patient was submitted before and after treatment with each drug to computerized digital thermometry to evaluate the therapeutic response. The data obtained during the intake of the two drugs at zero, five, and twenty-three minutes were compared with thermometry-relevant baseline data at the same periods. Ketanserin proved to be useful in the treatment of Raynaud's phenomenon and statistically significantly superior (α <0.05) with respect to nifedipine in the thermometric controls and also In the subjective evaluation of the patients (p c 0.02). In this study nifedipine did not show particular efficacy. Furthermore only 2 patients had to discontinue treatment with ketanserin, whereas 8 had to discontinue treatment with nifedipine (p < 0.001). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Occupational exposure to ethylene oxide (ETO) was studied in ten workers employed in a hospital sterilizer unit by testing environmental air, alveolar air and blood during and at the end of the workshift. Alveolar (Ca) and blood (Cb) ETO concentrations were correlated with each other ( r = 0.744, na = 36, P < 0.001) and both with the environmental (Ci) concentrations ( r = 0.947, n = 144, P < 0.001; r = 0.827, n = 36, P < 0.001). The alveolar retention of ETO (1-Ca/Ci) was equal to 75-80% of the inhaled ETO. In comparison with a blood/air partition coefficient equal in vitro to 90 (SD = 20), the mean Cb/Ca ratio found in the exposed workers was equal to 12-17. During work the blood ETO concentration was, on average, three times the environmental ETO concentration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Exposure to toluene was studied in a group of 14 subjects working in a printing industry, who were exposed to this solvent only. Environmental monitoring was carried out using personal samplers for the whole workshift over three consecutive days. Toluene TWA concentrations ranged from 37 to 229 mg/m. At the end of the workshift on each day of investigation, urine samples were collected for the determination of hippuric acid and ortho-cresol. Hippuric acid was also determined for urine before the workshift and on the Saturday and Monday mornings after the end of exposure; hippuric acid was also determined in 16 controls over the same five-day period. At the end of the workshift, hippuricuria levels in exposed workers always turned out to be statistically different from pre-workshift levels and those of the controls. The end-of-workshift hippuricuria levels of exposed workers were significantly correlated with the mean daily environmental concentration (TWA): in the three days of comparative study, we found r = 0.63 ( P < 0.05) on Day 1, r = 0.90 ( P < 0.001) on Day 2, and r = 0.87 ( P < 0.001) on Day 3. Orthocresol turned out to be correlated with daily exposure less significantly than hippuric acid: r = 0.49 (n.s.) on Day 1; r = 0.78 ( P < 0.001) on Day 2, and r = 0.65 ( P < 0.05) on Day 3. Using all available data (41 observations), a very significant correlation ( P < 0.001) was found between the TWA and both metabolites ( r = 0.80 for hippuric acid; r = 0.68 for o-cresol). The values of the two metabolites in the end-of-workshift urine samples (41 observations) also turned out to be well correlated ( r = 0.70; P < 0.001). The authors conclude that hippuric acid is a valid test for evaluating even low exposures to toluene. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Giornale Italiano di Medicina del Lavoro ed Ergonomia is the property of Giornale Italiano di Medicina del Lavoro ed Ergonomia Editorial Board and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Giornale Italiano di Medicina del Lavoro ed Ergonomia is the property of Giornale Italiano di Medicina del Lavoro ed Ergonomia Editorial Board and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Giornale Italiano di Medicina del Lavoro ed Ergonomia is the property of Giornale Italiano di Medicina del Lavoro ed Ergonomia Editorial Board and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)