bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Thirteen-Week Oral Toxicity Study of l-Arginine in Rats
Authors: Tsubuku Shoji , Hatayama Kazuhisa , Mawatari Kazunori , Smriga Miro , Kimura Takeshi
Published: May 2004

The amino acid l-arginine (Arg) has been used extensively in dietary and pharmacological products. This study evaluated toxicological and behavioral effects of Arg produced by Ajinomoto Co. (Tokyo, Japan) during a dosing study with male and female Sprague-Dawley rats. The amino acid was incorporated into a standard diet at doses equal to 1.25%, 2.5%, and 5.0% ( w/w). A control group of rats received only a standard diet. All diets were administered ad libitum for 13 continuous weeks. To examine recoverability of any potential effects, the administration period was followed by a 5-week-long recovery, during which only a standard diet was provided. In male and female rats in each concentration group, treatment-related changes were not observed for clinical signs, body weights, diet consumption, ophthalmology, gross pathology, organ weight, or histopathology. An elevated level of plasma glucose was detected in some male rats (5.0%, w/ w) during the analysis conducted in the fifth week of administration; however, the degree of the change was within the physiological range, and no changes were observed at the end of the administration period. In the same group, an increase in hemoglobin, together with a tendency toward an increase in the red blood cell counts, was found, but the change was considered toxicologically insignificant. The no-observed-adverse-effect level (NOAEL) for Arg was estimated at 5.0% ( w/w) for both genders (males, 3.3 ±0.1 g/kg/day; females, 3.9 ±0.2 g/kg/day).
Thirteen-Week Oral Toxicity Study of l-Glutamine in Rats
Authors: Tsubuku Shoji , Hatayama Kazuhisa , Mawatari Kazunori , Smriga Miro , Kimura Takeshi
Published: May 2004

l-Glutamine (Gln) is a semiessential amino acid used in enteral feeding in critically ill patients, and is contained in numerous dietary supplements available to the general public. This study evaluated toxicological effects of Gln in male and female Sprague-Dawley rats. Gln produced by Ajinomoto Co. (Tokyo, Japan) was incorporated into a standard diet at doses equal to 1.25%, 2.5%, and 5.0% ( w/ w), respectivelly. A control group of rats received only a standard diet. All diets were administered ad libitum for 13 consecutive weeks. To examine recoverability of any potential effects, the administration period was followed by a 5-week recovery period, during which only the standard diet was provided to all animals. Throughout the administration and recovery periods, no deaths were observed, and no changes in diet consumption, ophthalmologic findings, gross pathology, and histopathology were detected. Several changes in urine parameters (total protein, urine pH, and a positive incidence (±) of ketone bodies) were observed in the 2.5% and 5.0% groups at the end of the administration period. Minor increases were found in hematology parameters for the 5.0% group (platelet count, γ-globulin, lactate dehydrogenase [LDH]), but all changes were within physiological range. No effects of administration were observed in the 1.25% group. The no-observed-adverse-effect level (NOAEL) for Gln was estimated at 1.25% for both genders (males 0.83 ± 0.01 g/kg/day; females, 0.96 ± 0.06 g/kg/day).
Inhalation Two-Generation Reproductive Toxicity Study of Methyl Isobutyl Ketone in Rats
Authors: Nemec M. D. , Pitt J. A. , Topping D. C. , Gingell R. , Pavkov K. L. , Rauckman E. J. , Harris S. B.
Published: May 2004

To evaluate whether methyl isobutyl ketone (MIBK) affects reproductive performance, a two-generation reproduction study was conducted. MIBK was administered to 30 Sprague-Dawley rats/sex/group via whole-body inhalation at concentrations of 0, 500, 1000, or 2000 ppm, 6 h daily, for 70 days prior to mating. F0 and F1 females were exposed from mating through gestation day 20 and from postnatal day 5; F2 litters were maintained through post-natal day 21. No treatment-related mortality of adult animals occurred. There was a dose-related increase in adult animals with no or a decreased response to a sound stimulus at 1000 and 2000 ppm; however, no adverse clinical signs occurred 1 h after exposure, suggesting this was a transient sedative effect. Clinical signs of central nervous system (CNS) depression in the pups were observed and one F1 pup died after initial exposure to 2000 ppm on postnatal day 22; subsequently exposure was delayed until postnatal day 28. Decreased body weight gain and slight decreased food consumption were observed during the first 2 weeks of exposure in both generations at 2000 ppm. There were no adverse effects on male and female reproductive function or landmarks of sexual maturation. Increased F0 and F1 liver weights with associated centrilobular hypertrophy occurred in rats at 2000 ppm, indicative of an adaptive response. Increased male kidney weights at all exposure concentrations, associated with hyaline droplets, were indicative of male rat-specific nephropathy. Other than acute sedative effects, the no-observed-adverse-effect level (NOAEL) for parental systemic effects (excluding male rat kidney) was 1000 ppm, based on transient decreased body weight and food consumption; for reproductive effects, 2000 ppm, the highest concentration tested; and for neonatal toxicity, 1000 ppm (based on acute CNS depressive effects).
Thirteen-Week Oral Toxicity Study of L-Lysine Hydrochloride in Rats
Authors: Tsubuku Shoji , Mochizuki Masahiro , Mawatari Kazunori , Smriga Miro , Kimura Takeshi
Published: May 2004

l-Lysine hydrochloride (Lys) is an essential amino acid in humans and animals, and it is used in animal feeds, in prevention of herpes simplex recurrence, and cereal fortification in some developing countries. This study evaluated toxicological and behavioral effects of Lys during a dosing study with male and female Sprague-Dawley rats. The amino acid was incorporated into a standard diet at doses equal to 1.25%, 2.5%, and 5.0% ( w/ w). A control group of rats received a standard diet. All diets were administered ad libitum for 13 consecutive weeks. To examine stability of any potential effects, the administration period was followed by a 5-week recovery period, during which only the standard diet was provided to all animals. In male and female rats in each concentration group, treatment-related changes were not observed in the clinical signs, body weights, diet consumption, water intake, ophthalmology, gross pathology, organ weights, or histology. A Lys-related drop in serum concentration and an increase in urine excretion of chlorides was a compensatory reaction to the ingested hydrochloride. No functional, biochemical, or histological changes in renal function were found. The no-observed-adverse-effect level (NOAEL) for Lys was estimated at 5.0% for both genders (male, 3.36 ± 0.12 g/kg/day; female, 3.99 ± 0.28 g/kg/day).
Thirteen-Week Oral Toxicity Study of Branched-Chain Amino Acids in Rats
Authors: Tsubuku Shoji , Hatayama Kazuhisa , Katsumata Toyohisa , Nishimura Nobuo , Mawatari Kazunori , Smriga Miro , Kimura Takeshi
Published: May 2004

Branched-chain amino acids (l-isoleucine, l-valine, and l-leucine) are being increasingly used in sport supplements. This study evaluated toxicological and behavioral effects of l-isoleucine (Ile), l-valine (Val), and l-leucine (Leu) during a dosing study with male and female Sprague-Dawley rats. The amino acids were incorporated into a standard diet at doses equal to 1.25%, 2.5%, and 5.0% ( w/ w). A control group of rats received a standard diet. All diets were administered ad libitum for 13 consecutive weeks. To examine stability of any potential effects, the administration period was followed by a 5-week recovery period, during which only the standard diet was provided to all animals. No significant, dose-related effects on body weight were found in rats fed a Leu-and Ile-supplemented diet. Val mixed into a diet at 5.0% ( w/ w) decreased slightly, but significantly body weight gain in females, but not males. Ile (5.0% w/ w) affected the urine electrolytes, protein, ketone bodies, urine glucose, and urobilinogen in both genders, yet the observed changes remained mostly within the range observed in controls. The random findings in hepatology and ophthalmology at the 13-week sacrifice were not considered toxicologically relevant to effects of the tested amino acids. No significant changes in organ weights were recorded. We estimate the no-observed-adverse-effect level (NOAEL) for Ile at 2.5% for both genders (male, 1.565 ± 0.060 g/kg/day; females, 1.646 ± 0.095 g/kg/day), Val at 5.0% for males (3.225 ± 0.135 g/kg/day) and 2.5% for females (1.853 ± 0.060 g/kg/day), and Leu at 5.0% for both genders (males, 3.333 ± 0.101 g/kg/day: females, 3.835 ± 0.257 g/kg/day).
Fascist censorship on literature and the case of Elio Vittorini
Authors: Bonsaver Guido
Published: May 2004

This article tackles the issue of literary censorship in Fascist Italy. The first part offers an outline of the organization and the practices with which the regime attempted to control publishers and authors. It tracks the development of Mussolini's Press Office into a fully fledged ministry, examines the introduction of a semi-preventive form of censorship, and looks at the effects of the anti-Semitic laws. The second part concentrates on the literary activities of the novelist, editor and translator, Elio Vittorini. His many encounters with Fascist censorship provide ideal subject matter for a close examination of how censorship affected literary production. It also provides an example of the need to re-address aspects of Italy's literary history during the Fascist period, particularly in relation to questions of coercive and consensual collaboration with the regime.
Institutional and industrial changes in the Italian South: the case of Brindisi
Authors: Greco Lidia
Published: May 2004

This article proposes an institutionalist reading of the processes of industrial and employment change taking place in the clothing industry in Brindisi, Italy, during the 1990s. In contrast to more orthodox economic interpretations that focus on the separation between the economy and institutions, this article assumes the centrality of institutions for an understanding of industrial and employment performances and their change over time. Institutions profoundly affect the pursuit of the objectives of profit and efficiency in that they influence the definition of what can be considered as rational in a given institutional configuration and compatible with the values that a given society holds as socially and economically legitimate.
Integration or marginalization? The failures of social policy for the Roma in Rome
Authors: Marinaro Isabella Clough
Published: May 2004

This article examines Rome City Council's policies concerning the Roma during Francesco Rutelli's two terms as mayor (1993-2001). It demonstrates that the Rutelli administration's policies for these minority communities shifted from a superficial but genuine attempt to overcome aspects of marginalization to a criminalizing strategy of exclusion. It is argued here that the failure significantly to improve the social conditions of the Roma was due to (a) a refusal to tackle the inter-related causes of their social exclusion and (b) submission to the anti-Roma hostility of parts of the voting public. Following the demolition of Rome's largest shanty town in October 2000, the Council was unable to house many of the Roma it had made homeless. It would seem that a ‘cleaning-up’ campaign was intro duced to distance undocumented individuals and those with criminal records from the city through a notable rise in police raids. This change in approach was accompanied and justified by an intensification of ethnicized public order discourse.
Conference report: Joint panels of the ‘Italian Politics Specialist Group’ with the ‘French Politics and Policy Specialist Group’ and panels of the ‘Italian Politics Specialist Group’ at the 53rd Annual Conference of the Political Studies Association (‘Democracy and Diversity’), 15–17 April 2003, University of Leicester
Authors: Albertazzi Daniele
Published: May 2004

The ‘Italian Politics Group’ of the Political Studies Association (PSA) convened for the second time at the organization's annual conference, held this year at the University of Leicester. Co-ordinated by Felia Allum (Bath) and Jim Newell (Salford), the group provides a forum for debating Italian politics and generating collaborative publications among scholars largely, but not exclusively, based in the United Kingdom. This year, apart from its own panels, the group organized joint discussions on ‘decentralization’ and ‘presidentialism’ with the PSA's specialists in French politics.
Progression to AIDS slowed even more after the first two years with highly active antiretroviral therapy
Authors: Amundsen Ellen J. , Fekjær Harald
Published: May 2004

Aims: The aim of this study was to describe the effectiveness of highly active antiretroviral treatment for HIV after the treatment became publicly available in Norway in August 1996 and through to the year 2000. The effectiveness was studied for the three main transmission groups for HIV in Norway. Methods: Effectiveness was measured as change in progression to AIDS after highly active antiretroviral treatment for HIV was introduced in the population of HIV-diagnosed persons. Notifications of HIV diagnosed persons and persons with AIDS from 1983 to 2000 in Norway were used in the analysis. Progression to AIDS after August 1996 compared with progression to AIDS before 1996 was analysed by Kaplan-Meier curves and Cox regression models. Results: Progression to AIDS slowed after highly active antiretroviral treatment was introduced. The intensity of getting AIDS was significantly reduced after August 1996 compared with the intensity of getting AIDS before August 1996. The reduction in intensity after August 1996 was less explicit in the two years following August 1996 than in the subsequent two and a half years from August 1998 to December 2000. The reduction was less explicit among HIV-diagnosed intravenous drug users. Conclusions: The effectiveness of highly active antiretroviral treatment lasted for at least four and a half years and increased after the first two calendar years. The problem of less effectiveness among HIV-diagnosed intravenous drug users should be addressed by the health authorities.
Adverse social factors predict early ageing in middle-aged men and women: the Ebeltoft Health Study, Denmark
Authors: Nilsson Peter M. , Engberg Marianne , Nilsson Jan-Åke , Karlsmose Bo , Lauritzen Torsten
Published: May 2004

Aims: This study examined whether adverse social factors are associated with an increased rate of biological ageing in middle-aged subjects. Methods: The authors investigated five markers of biological ageing in 690 subjects followed for five years in Ebeltoft, Denmark. Mean age at baseline was 40 years (range 30 - 50 years). These markers included repeated measures of pulse pressure, lung function, hearing, physical work capacity and a cardiovascular risk score. A z-score was calculated based on a factor analysis of the five markers used. The relative biological age was finally calculated in relation to chronological age in subgroups of different social class (occupation, educational level) and marital status, at baseline and after follow-up. Results: Men and women from a higher social class appeared to be biologically younger than corresponding subjects from a lower social class (p<0.001). This difference was still evident after 5 years of follow-up (p<0.01) for men and women of different occupations and for women of different educational levels (p<0.01). Married/cohabiting men were biologically younger than single men and this difference increased during the follow-up period in that the difference between groups at five-year follow-up was significant (p<0.05). Conclusions: Middle-aged men and women from a higher social class showed signs of being biologically younger than their corresponding chronological age, while the opposite was found for men and women of lower social class. This discrepancy was still evident after five years of follow-up, and even tended to increase for single men. Differential ageing may thus be an important biological aspect of differences in health according to social class.
Multilevel modelling and public health policy
Authors: Leyland Alastair H. , Groenewegen Peter P.
Published: May 2004

Background: Multilevel modelling is a statistical technique that extends ordinary regression analysis to the situation where the data are hierarchical. Such data form an increasingly common evidence base for public health policy, and as such it is important that policy makers should be aware of this methodology. Method: This paper therefore lays out the a basic description of multilevel modelling, discusses the problems of alternative approaches, and details the relevance for public health policy before describing which levels are relevant and illustrating the different kinds of hypotheses that can be tested using multilevel modelling. A series of examples is used throughout the paper. These relate to regional variations in the incidence of heart disease, the allocation of health resources, the relationship between neighbourhood disorder and mental health, the demand-control model in occupational health, and a school intervention to prevent cardiovascular disease.
Clients' perceptions of contact with professionals within healthcare and social insurance offices
Authors: Östlund Gunnel M. , Borg Karin E. , Wide Peter , Hensing Gunnel K. E. , Alexanderson Kristina A. E.
Published: May 2004

Aims: An increasing number of people interact with professionals within healthcare and social insurance offices during periods of sick leave due to musculoskeletal disorders. Knowledge of clients' perceptions of such contact is scarce. This study analysed clients' perceptions of their contact with professionals within healthcare and social insurance offices. Methods: A cohort study was conducted in the municipality of Linköping, Sweden. Participants were all citizens who in 1985 were aged 25 - 34 years and had at least one new sick-leave spell due to back, neck, or shoulder diagnoses exceeding 28 days (n=213). In 1996, 11 years after inclusion, a questionnaire about perception of contact with professionals, self-perceived health, and mental health was administered. Register data on sickness absence and disability pension from 1985 - 96 were also obtained. Results: Factor analysis indicated the existence of three dimensions of contact with professionals: supportive treatment, distant treatment, and empowering treatment. Women perceived their contact with both social insurance officers and healthcare professionals as more supportive than did the men. Respondents with disability pensions perceived their contact with social insurance officers as more supportive and empowering than persons without disability pensions. Respondents with mental health problems perceived their contact with both types of professionals as more distant. Respondents with neck/shoulder diagnoses perceived their contact with healthcare professionals as more empowering than respondents with low back diagnoses. Conclusion: There was a relationship between clients' perceptions of contact with professionals and the sex, disability pension, diagnosis, and mental health of clients.
Appropriateness of anthropometric obesity indicators in assessment of coronary heart disease risk among Finnish men and women
Authors: Silventoinen Karri , Jousilahti Pekka , Vartiainen Erkki , Tuomilehto Jaakko
Published: May 2004

Aims: The aim of the study was to compare the appropriateness of different obesity indicators in the assessment of coronary heart disease (CHD) risk. Methods: The study cohort included 11,510 Finnish men and women aged 25 to 64 year at baseline who participated in a cardiovascular disease risk factor survey in 1987 or 1992. At baseline, data on smoking and diabetes were recorded, blood pressure, body mass index (BMI), waist circumference (WC), and waist to hip ratio (WHR) were measured, and serum total and high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol were determined. A follow-up was done to the end of 1997. Death or diagnosed event from CHD was used as an outcome variable. Results: At baseline, BMI was the best explaining variable for systolic and diastolic blood pressure (DBP) and for total cholesterol, whereas WC was the best explaining variable for HDL cholesterol, among both men and women. During the follow-up, WHR was the best predictor of CHD incidence. However, after the adjustment for other CHD risk factors none of the obesity indicators remained statistically significant. In both sexes, BMI was a statistically significant predictor of CHD incidence among subjects with DBP lower than the mean. Among men, a similar interaction was seen between DBP and WC. Conclusion: WHR was the best predictor of CHD incidence in our data. Abdominal obesity has an effect on CHD incidence independently of general obesity.
Leisure time, occupational and household physical activity, and risk factors for cardiovascular disease in working men and women: the WOLF study
Authors: Fransson Eleonor I. M. , Alfredsson Lars S. , H. de Faire Ulf , Knutsson Anders , Westerholm Peter J. M.
Published: May 2004

Aims: The aim of the present study was to examine the association of leisure time, occupational and household physical activity, as well as a combination of these (total activity), with four major risk factors for cardiovascular disease. Methods: Cross-sectional data from the Work, Lipids and Fibrinogen (WOLF) study were used. The study population consisted of 10,413 employed persons from two regions in Sweden, 7,168 men and 3,245 women, aged 19 to 70 years. Results: The adjusted prevalence ratio (PR) of having low high density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol levels was 0.54 (95% confidence interval (C.I.) 0.46 - 0.65) for men and 0.55 (95% C.I. 0.41 - 0.73) for women who were involved in leisure time physical activity on a regular basis compared with persons with a more sedentary lifestyle. The adjusted PR of having elevated plasma fibrinogen was also significantly lower among those with regular leisure time physical activity. Occupational and household physical activity showed different associations among men and women. Women with high self-perceived household physical activity had an adjusted PR of 1.33 (95% C.I. 1.05 - 1.68) of having low HDL cholesterol levels. Total activity showed strong beneficial associations with several cardiovascular risk factors. Overweight persons seemed to have relatively more benefit from their physical activity with regard to cardiovascular risk factors than leaner persons. Smokers did not have as strong relative decrease in plasma fibrinogen with increasing activity level as non-smokers. Conclusion: Leisure time, as well as total physical activity, was associated inversely with cardiovascular risk factors, particularly HDL cholesterol, in both men and women.
High prevalence of tiredness and pain in young schoolchildren
Authors: Petersen Solveig , Bergström Erik , Brulin Christine
Published: May 2004

Aims: This study presents the prevalence of tiredness, headache, stomach ache, and backache in young schoolchildren. Methods: A randomized cluster sample of 1,155 children from grade 0 to 6 (aged 6 - 13 years) in Umeå, a city in northern Sweden, completed a questionnaire. Results: Tiredness was the most frequently reported complaint. One-third (31%) of the children felt tired at least once a week, when starting school in the morning, and 16% felt tired almost every day. Headache was the most commonly reported pain: 23% reported weekly recurrent headache and 9% had headache more than once a week. However, in the two lowest grades, stomach ache was more common than headache. The prevalence of weekly recurrent stomach ache was 19% while 8% experienced stomach ache more than once a week. Recurrent monthly backache was reported by 18% of the children, approximately half of them reporting weekly complaints. In general, the prevalence of complaints increased by grade. Headache and stomach ache were more prevalent among girls compared with boys, while no gender difference was seen for tiredness and backache. Conclusions: This study shows that tiredness, headache, stomach ache, and backache are common also among young schoolchildren. The results suggest a need of preventive efforts addressing these complaints at early age.
Cardiovascular risk factor levels differ between communities of different sizes in the Northern Sweden MONICA Project
Authors: Messner Torbjörn , Lundberg Vivan , Stegmayr Birgitta
Published: May 2004

Aim: To compare the levels of the main cardiovascular risk factors in communities of different sizes in northern Sweden. Methods: Blood pressure, cholesterol, smoking habits, the prevalence of diabetes mellitus, and body mass index for 6,167 men and women below age 65 were examined in the Northern Sweden MONICA surveys in 1986, 1990, 1994, and 1999. The size of the community where each individual lived and the levels of relevant confounders were also recorded. Results: The proportion of persons with a higher educational level decreased gradually with decreasing community size. Total serum cholesterol, systolic blood pressure, the prevalence of diabetes mellitus and the body mass index were significantly higher in the smallest communities (<1000 inhabitants) as compared with the largest (>15,000 inhabitants) but there were fewer smokers among men in the smallest communities. The time trends indicated an overall decreasing serum cholesterol level and increasing body mass index for both sexes and a decreasing proportion of smokers among men during the years surveyed. Conclusions: There are differences in levels of cardiovascular risk factors between communities of different sizes in the Northern Sweden MONICA area, mainly to the disadvantage of the smallest communities.
Self-reported medicine use among 11- to 15-year-old girls and boys in Denmark 1988 - 1998
Authors: Holstein Bjørn E. , Hansen Ebba Holme , Due Pernille , Almarsdóttir Anna Birna
Published: May 2004

Aims: To describe the self-reported medicine use for common health complaints among 11 - 15-year-olds in Denmark during a ten year period, 1988 - 1998. The paper focuses on medicine for headache, stomach ache, cough, cold, nervousness, and difficulties in getting to sleep. Methods: Four cross-sectional surveys of 11 - 15-year-old students in random samples of schools in Denmark, conducted in 1988 (n=1,671), 1991 (n=1,860), 1994 (n=4,046) and 1998 (n=5,205). The surveys were similar with regard to sampling and data collection. Data were collected by self-administered questionnaires in the classroom. Results: A large proportion of 11 - 15-year-olds reported medicine use during the past month. It was most common to take medicines for headache (used by 55% of 15-year-old girls and 36% of 15-year-old boys in 1998) and stomach ache (33% among 15-year-old girls in 1998). Pain reliever use was higher among girls than boys and this sex difference increased with age. There was an upward trend in reported medicine use from 1988 to 1998, in particular regarding medicine for stomach-ache among 13- and 15-year-old girls. A large proportion of girls were frequent users of medicine for headache, stomach-ache, and sleeping difficulties. Conclusion: A high proportion of 11 - 15-year-old girls and boys reported medicine use in relation to common health complaints. The proportion of users increased during the past decade. It is suggested that more information about medicine be built into health education programs in the future.
Smoking and associated factors among adolescents in Tallinn, Helsinki and Moscow: a multilevel analysis
Authors: Pärna Kersti , Rahu Kaja , Fischer Krista , Mussalo-Rauhamaa Helena , Zhuravleva Irina , Umbleja Triin , Rahu Mati
Published: May 2004

Aims: To investigate variations in smoking and associated factors on individual and aggregate level among adolescents in Tallinn (Estonia), Helsinki (Finland) and Moscow (the Russian Federation). Methods: The data was collected in Tallinn (N=1268 in Estonian and N=901 in Russian schools), in Helsinki (N=1396) and in Moscow (N=618) from pupils aged 13 - 18 by self-administered questionnaire. Multilevel analysis was used to estimate the possible effects of background characteristics, of the proximity of other smokers and the school context on the tobacco use of pupils. Results: The prevalence rate of smoking among girls in Russian schools in Tallinn (34.6%), among girls in Helsinki (39.5%), and in Moscow (32.1%) was higher than that among girls in Estonian schools in Tallinn (17.6%). Smoking was slightly less prevalent among boys in Helsinki (27.5%), compared to boys in Estonian (33.6%) and Russian (35.6%) schools in Tallinn, and to boys in Moscow (32.8%). Smoking increased with age. Multilevel analysis showed that smoking differed by school among pupils. Individual determinants of smoking as study site, grade, friends', siblings' and parental smoking behaved differently depending upon school. Friends and siblings' smoking showed interaction with study site to the smoking among girls. Conclusions: Strategies aimed at influencing smoking behaviour need to be directed not only towards the individual, but also towards the influences within the child's school environment.
Work characteristics and morbidity as predictors of self-perceived health status in Norwegian physicians
Authors: Stavem Knut , Hofoss Dag , Aasland Olaf G.
Published: May 2004

Aims: The purpose of this study was to assess whether work characteristics and morbidity are predictors of physical, psychological, and social functioning in physicians. Methods: A cross-sectional study was undertaken of 1,126 Norwegian physicians. For comparison of health status scores, the Short Form 36 questionnaire was used, adjusting for differences in age and gender where applicable. Somatic morbidity was classified on the basis of self-reported conditions and psychiatric morbidity with score on the 25-item Hopkins symptom checklist using a cut-off indicating clinical psychiatric disease. Multiple logistic regression analysis was used with SF-36 dimension score below/above the 10th percentile as the dependent variable. Results: In the multivariate model, psychiatric comorbidity was a significant predictor in 7 of 8 dimensions of health status (odds ratio 0.17 to 0.49), and somatic comorbidity in 6 of 8 dimensions of health status (odds ratio 0.33 to 0.59). Working hours was a significant predictor of only one dimension of health status, general health, after adjustment for demographic and work-related variables. Conclusions: The most important predictors for most dimensions of health status among Norwegian physicians were the presence or absence of self-reported somatic or psychiatric morbidity, while working hours, choice of specialty, and position were less important.
Impaired fasting glucose and impaired glucose tolerance are related to both heredity and low birth weight
Authors: Mogren Ingrid , Lindahl Bernt , Högberg Ulf
Published: May 2004

Aim: The aim of the study was to test the hypothesis of an association between low birth weight (LBW), abnormal glucose metabolism and heredity. Methods: Common subjects were identified as newborns in a local birth register and as adult participants in the Västerbotten Intervention Programme (n=7,796). Outcome measures such as impaired fasting glucose (IFG) and impaired glucose tolerance (IGT) were investigated in relation to LBW, family history of diabetes, and sex. Results: Fasting plasma glucose and two-hour plasma glucose were elevated among women with LBW in relation to normal birth weight (NBW). Men and women with NBW had increased risks of IFG and IGT if there was a hereditary background of diabetes mellitus. LBW and hereditary background of diabetes mellitus interacted on the risk of IFG and IGT in women. Conclusions: Hereditary background of diabetes and LBW increase the risk of abnormal glucose metabolism such as IFG and IGT in early middle age. LBW and hereditary background of diabetes have a synergy effect on the risk of IFG and IGT in women.
Review Article: Developments in Scandinavian and American medical sociology
Authors: Riska Elianne
Published: May 2004

This paper examines the similarities and differences in Scandinavian and American medical sociology. First, the issue of medicalization has not been as important in Scandinavian as it has been in American medical sociology. Second, women's health has been less explored in Scandinavian than in American medical sociology. Third, research on social inequalities and health has been a major focus in Scandinavian medical sociology since the 1990s. Fourth, cultural sociology and the poststructuralist perspective have been part of mainstream theory building in European sociology and also European and Scandinavian medical sociology during the past decade, while American medical sociology has been characterized by social-role theory and a quantitative approach.
FilaBavi, a demographic surveillance site, an epidemiological field laboratory in Vietnam
Authors: Nguyen Thi Kim Chuc  , Diwan Vinod K.
Published: May 2004

Background: This Supplement to the Scandinavian Journal of Public Health brings together a collection of community-based studies for which the common denominator is a demographic surveillance site, FilaBavi, established in northern Vietnam in 1999. This introductory paper sets out some of the background to FilaBavi as well as setting the scene for the individual studies.
Patterns of mortality in Bavi, Vietnam, 1999 - 2001
Authors: Byass Peter
Published: May 2004

Aims: Demographic data including detailed mortality patterns for Vietnam are relatively sparse, mainly coming from national census data. This paper describes detailed mortality findings from a sample drawn from the population of one district of northern Vietnam, over the three-year period 1999-2001. Methods: These data were based on quarterly household visits to collect data on vital events, covering 142,318 person-years of observation over a three-year period. Results: Crude mortality was 5.1 per 1,000 person-years (4.7 for females and 5.6 for males). Infant mortality was 21.6 per 1,000 live births and crude birth rate was 14.7 per 1,000. Life expectancy at birth was 75.2 years (78.8 year for females and 71.1 for males). Residents of mountainous and highland areas experienced lower mortality than riverside and island dwellers. Conclusions: These findings are discussed in the light of two major demographic factors: the legacy of the Vietnam War and, more recently, the effect of Vietnam's two-child policy. Although these mortality estimates seem low, there is good reason to believe that they accurately reflect the current state of this population. Vietnam as a whole enjoys low mortality in relation to its socioeconomic status compared with neighbouring countries.
Community-based assessment of unintentional injuries: a pilot study in rural Vietnam
Authors: Hoang Minh Hang  , Ekman Robert , Ton That Bach  , Byass Peter , Svanström Leif
Published: May 2004

Aims: Although unintentional injuries are recognised as a major public health problem globally, little is known about their patterns and rates at the community level in most low-income countries. Rapid social development, leading to increased traffic and industrialization, may be changing patterns of injury. Injuries within the home environment have not so far been recognized to the same extent as traffic and work-related injuries in Vietnam, largely because they have not been effectively counted. This study took place in northern Vietnam, in the context of a longitudinal community surveillance site called FilaBavi, as a pilot project aiming to determine the community incidence of unintentional injury and to explore appropriate methods for community-based injury surveillance. Methods: An initial study population of 23,807 was identified and asked about their experience of injury in the preceding three months. Results: Overall 450 new injuries were detected over 5,952 person-years, a rate of 76 per 1,000 person-years. Males were injured at 1.6 times the rate of females, and home and road traffic accidents were most common. Most injuries occurred during unpaid household tasks. Cutting and crushing injuries occurred most frequently. Of 221 deaths from all causes in the FilaBavi population during 1999 among 43,444 person-years, 25 were attributed to unintentional injuries and two to suicide. Unintentional injury was the third leading cause of death in this community, with a case-fatality rate of 0.8%. Discussion: The findings suggest that greater attention needs to be directed toward the prevention of injuries occurring in the home in rural Vietnam. On the basis of this pilot study, a one-year study using the same approach is under way to characterize the patterns of unintentional injury in more detail, including any seasonal variation.
The role of health economics in Vietnam: a tentative research agenda
Authors: Lindholm Lars , Nguyen Xuan Thanh
Published: May 2004

Little health economics research has been done in developing countries, reflecting the fact that 10% of the world's health research is devoted to 90% of the world's health problems. Healthcare in developing countries relies more on market mechanisms than healthcare in developed countries. From a health economist's point of view, there are reasons to suspect that healthcare systems in many developing countries are both inefficient and inequitable. The public healthcare model in Europe offers better solutions to the problems in developing countries than the private health care model in the USA. In this article aspects of the health economics situation in Vietnam are discussed and some important health economics research questions identified.
Who trusts?: The origins of social trust in seven societies
Authors: Delhey Jan , Newton Kenneth
Published: May 2004

This article identifies six main theories of the determinants of social trust, and tests them against survey data from seven societies, 1999-2001. Three of the six theories of trust fare rather poorly and three do better. First and foremost, social trust tends to be high among citizens who believe that there are few severe social conflicts and where the sense of public safety is high. Second, informal social networks are associated with trust. And third, those who are successful in life trust more, or are more inclined by their personal experience to do so. Individual theories seem to work best in societies with higher levels of trust, and societal ones in societies with lower levels of trust. This may have something to do with the fact that our two low trust societies, Hungary and Slovenia, happen to have experienced revolutionary change in the very recent past, so that societal events have overwhelmed individual circumstances.
Street-level corruption in industrialized and developing countries
Authors: Nieuwbeerta Paul , De Geest Gerrit , Siegers Jacques
Published: May 2004

This paper offers a cross-country analysis of street-level corruption. In line with earlier studies on general corruption (where data did not allow a distinction between street-level and high-level corruption, e.g. Treisman 2000 and La Porta et al . 1999), nine hypotheses based on general economic theories of law enforcement are tested using data from the International Crime Victims Survey (ICVS) held in forty countries (N = 27,456). The analyses employ multilevel logistic regression models. The results show that citizens living in countries with (a) high levels of economic development, (b) high levels of economic freedom, (c) long exposure to democracy, (d) a non-federal structure, (e) Protestant traditions, and (f) a British legal culture, experience less corruption. A relation between corruption levels and economic development, economic freedom, long democratic traditions, and a British legal culture, however, is found only when no distinction is made between industrialized and developing countries. As for individual characteristics, a higher risk of being victimized by corruption is correlated with a lower age and higher levels of education and income.
Moving in and out of poverty
Authors: Layte Richard , Whelan Christopher T.
Published: May 2004

Although many of the debates around social exclusion and cumulative disadvantage relate to processes that occur across time, there has been relatively little research into poverty dynamics except in a few notable countries such as Britain, the USA and Germany. This neglect is almost entirely because of the absence of comparative longitudinal data on income for other countries, but it is regrettable given the central importance of this area. By studying poverty dynamics we not only get a better insight into the processes leading to patterns of disadvantage and inequality, but we can also understand better the influence of different welfare state regimes on the social risks experienced by different types of individuals and households. The extent to which different national contexts protect their citizens from poverty persistence, or vary in the factors leading to poverty persistence, tells us a great deal about the workings of their socioeconomic systems and welfare regimes.

In this article we use the recent availability of five waves of the European Community Household Panel Survey to outline the nature of poverty persistence and poverty dynamics across a large number of countries. In doing so we ask three important questions. First, is poverty a more common experience when viewed longitudinally rather than cross-sectionally, and how is this affected by the income poverty line used? Second, can we identify a tendency toward poverty persistence, and does this vary in its extent across countries? Third and lastly, what types of events are more likely to lead to entry into and exit from poverty, and does the importance of these events differ between countries? The article shows that the experience of poverty is far wider than is appreciated from cross-sectional data, and also tends to be more concentrated on a particular population than would be expected from cross-sectional rates. Moreover, the pattern of poverty persistence is congruent with welfare regime theory. The importance of country institutions and welfare regimes is also underlined by the finding that social welfare and market incomes play different roles in poverty transitions across countries, and that Southern European, or residualist, welfare regimes focus poverty risks on the experience of the household's primary earner to a far greater extent than Northern European welfare states do.
Educational systems and perceived social inequality
Authors: Groß Martin
Published: May 2004

This paper investigates the effect of intra-generational mobility patterns on collective social action. We start with the assumption that employees tend to collective action in pursuing their economic interests only if their social position is homogeneous, stable in time and characterized by privileges (or structural disadvantages). We believe that patterns of intra-generational mobility (and not only those of inter-generational mobility) are crucial for these preconditions of collective action. These conditions can come into effect only in systems of ‘closed positions’, where intra-generational mobility is restricted. In systems of open positions, a high degree of intra-generational mobility prevents the existence of homogeneous, stable and privileged social positions.

In addition, the institutional arrangements of a given society, especially the educational system, determine to a great extent whether occupational positions are closed or not. In societies with standardized, stratified and differentiated educational systems, intra-generational mobility is restricted by credentialist allocation regimes so that the three conditions are fulfilled and patterns of collective action have a high probability of arising.

This hypothesis is tested by an international comparison of effects on perceived social inequality using data from the International Social Justice Project (1991, 1996). It turns out that, as expected, in credentialist countries, educational titles and class position have stronger effects on perceived social inequality than in non-credentialist societies. But it was found that the economic system also plays an important role in the structuring of perceived inequality.
Improvements in Separation of Non‐Ferrous Scrap Metals Using an Electromagnetic Sensor
Authors: Mesina M. B. , de Jong T. P. R. , Dalmijn W. L.
Published: May 2004

This article describes a new method for identification and separation of non‐ferrous scrap metals using an electromagnetic sensor that is based on the eddy current principle. The electromagnetic sensor (EMS) is a prototype system that has been developed by Delft University of Technology in co‐operation with industry. Experimental results obtained with different non‐ferrous metals are presented. The theory behind the sensor and the main components of the system are described.
Separation Performance of PVC and PP Plastic Mixture Using Air Table
Authors: Dodbiba G. , Shibayama A. , Miyazaki T. , Fujita T.
Published: May 2004

The aim of the research presented in this article was to investigate separation performance of the air table when separating a binary mixture of plastics. Separation using the air table, i.e. a dry mechanical process that grades constituents of the mixture with differences in specific gravity, is employed for separation of the PVC/PP mixture. Moreover, the performance of the laboratory‐scale air table is improved by increasing the height of riffles laid on the porous deck.

The separation tests in a laboratory‐scale air table showed that the total efficiency of the separation is mainly dependent on superficial velocity of the air, longitudinal vibrating frequency of the deck, end slope, side slope, and height of riffles. The respective influence of these variables upon the total efficiency of separation is demonstrated experimentally.

The evaluations of the separation performance for the two‐component mixture are made in terms of grade [%], recovery [%] and total efficiency [%].
Effect of Roasting Temperature on the Magnetism of Ilmenite
Authors: Allen N. R.
Published: May 2004

The enhancement of ilmenite magnetic susceptibility by roasting is well known, and it is used routinely in the magnetic separation of mineral sands, yet surprisingly little appears to be known in detail about the development of this magnetisation as roast temperatures increase. An examination of the changes in both magnetic susceptibility and magnetic rotatability within the roast temperature range 350–650°C reveals some interesting low‐temperature magnetisation changes. The results suggest the presence at low roast temperatures of very small magnetised regions that behave as though they are superparamagnetic, and suggest that the growth of these regions plays a significant part in the development of roast‐induced magnetisation. The results also show that the bulk magnetic development above 500°C is a resultant of several temperature‐dependent competing processes.
SLon Magnetic Separator Applied to Upgrading the Iron Concentrate
Authors: Dahe Xiong
Published: May 2004

SLon vertical ring and pulsating high gradient magnetic separator is a new generation of a highly efficient equipment for processing weakly magnetic minerals[1–3]. It possesses advantages of a large beneficiation ratio, high recovery, a matrix that cannot easily be blocked and excellent performance. In the technical reform of upgrading the iron concentrate in Qi Dashan Mineral Processing Plant of Anshan Iron and Steel Company in 2001 to 2002, ten SLon‐1750 magnetic separators were successfully applied to process oxidized iron ores. The iron concentrate of the plant was upgraded from 63.22% Fe to 67.11% Fe. The overall results of the reformed flowsheet are: the feed grade 29.84% Fe, the iron concentrate grade 67.11% Fe, the tailings grade 11.27% Fe, and the iron recovery 74.79%, which set up a new historical record of the plant.