bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Inequities in reporting asbestos-related lung cancer: influence of smoking stigma and physician’s specialty, workload and role perception
Authors: Verger P , Arnaud S , Ferrer S , Iarmarcovai G , Saliba M-L , Viau A , Souville M
Published: October 2007

Objectives:

To study physician barriers to workers’ compensation claims for asbestos-related cancers, focusing on smokers’ stigma and physicians’ speciality and role perception.

Methods:

Cross-sectional telephone study of 486 randomly-selected general practitioners (GPs) and pulmonologists in south-eastern France. Standardised questionnaires explored their behaviour, attitudes and practices in the field of occupational health and their responses to a case vignette of a lung cancer patient with long-term occupational asbestos exposure. Randomised subgroups of GPs and pulmonologists heard alternative versions varying only as regards the worker’s smoking status. We studied factors associated with the recommendation that the case vignette patient file a compensation claim with simple and multiple logistic regressions.

Results:

The response rate was 64.4 among GPs and 62.5 among pulmonologists. Recommending the filing of an occupational disease claim was significantly associated in multiple logistic regressions with speciality (OR 4.46; 95 CI 2.38 to 8.37, for pulmonologists vs GPs), patient’s smoking status (OR 3.15; 95 CI 2.11 to 4.70, for non-smokers vs smokers), physician’s workload (OR 1.83; 95 CI 1.17 to 2.88, for ⩽25 consultations per day vs >25) and role perception (OR 2.00; 95 CI 1.22 to 3.27, for those who considered completing occupational disease medical certificates to be part of their role vs those who did not).

Conclusions:

The results of this French study appear applicable to various countries and contexts. To make physicians and especially GPs more aware of occupational health and smoking stigma, officials and educators must give these topics higher priority during initial training and continuing medical education. Tools and equipment that take time constraints into account should be developed and disseminated to help physicians manage occupational diseases.
Recent advances and controversies in adult cardiopulmonary resuscitation
Authors: Ibrahim Wanis H
Published: October 2007

Since its introduction more than four and half decades ago, the science of cardiopulmonary resuscitation has been enriched with a significant amount of scientific evidence. This in turn has led to the birth of new evidence based guidelines for resuscitation published by the European Resuscitation Council and the American Heart Association in late 2005. This article aims to review the recent advances and controversies in the science of resuscitation.
Intravenous administration of metoclopramide by 2 min bolus vs 15 min infusion: does it affect the improvement of headache while reducing the side effects?
Authors: Parlak Ismet , Erdur Bulent , Parlak Mine , Ergin Ahmet , Turkcuer Ibrahim , Tomruk Onder , Ayrik Cuneyt , Ergin Nesrin
Published: October 2007

Objective

To determine the therapeutic effect (alleviation of vascular type headache) and side effects of a slow intravenous metoclopramide infusion over 15 min compared with those effects of a bolus intravenous metoclopramide infusion over 2 min in the treatment of patients with recent onset vascular type headache.

Material and methods

All adults treated with metoclopramide for vascular type headache were eligible for entry into this clinical randomised double blinded trial. This study compared the effects of two different rates of intravenous infusion of metoclopramide over a period of 13 months at a university hospital emergency department. During the trial, side effects and headache scores were recorded at baseline (0 min), and then at 5, 15, 30 and 60 min. Repeated measures analysis of variance was used to compare the medication's efficacy and side effects.

Results

A total of 120 patients presenting to the emergency department met the inclusion criteria. Of these, 62 patients (51.7%) were given 10 mg metoclopramide as a slow intravenous infusion over 15 min (SIG group) and 58 patients (48.3%) were given 10 mg metoclopramide intravenous bolus infusion over 2 min (BIG group). 17 of the 58 patients in the BIG group (29.3%) and 4 of the 62 patients (6.5%) in the SIG group had akathisia (p = 0.001). There were no significant differences between the BIG and SIG groups in terms of mean headache scores (p = 0.34) and no adverse reactions in the study period. Metoclopramide successfully relieved the headache symptom(s) of patients in both the BIG and SIG groups.

Conclusion

Slowing the infusion rate of metoclopramide is an effective strategy for the improvement of headache and reducing the incidence of akathisia in patients with vascular type headache.
Testis cancer
Authors: Khan Omar , Protheroe Andrew
Published: October 2007

Testis cancer is an increasing problem, especially in northern European male populations. However, survival has improved dramatically over one generation. Environmental factors may have a role in the aetiology with high oestrogen concentrations implicated. Testis cancer is subdivided between seminoma and non-seminoma. At presentation, a testicular lump is the most common finding and radical inguinal orchidectomy is recommended for most. Further multidisciplinary management is determined by histological subtype and stage and involves chemotherapy, radiotherapy and surgery, with many patients only undergoing surveillance. There is increasing emphasis on reducing toxicity of treatments in long term survivors. Treatment refractory testis cancer remains a significant challenge.
Effect of an acute medical admission unit on key quality indicators assessed by funnel plots
Authors: Moloney Edward D , Bennett Kathleen , Silke Bernard
Published: October 2007

Objective

To determine the effect of the introduction of an acute medical admissions unit (AMAU) on key quality efficiency and outcome indicator comparisons between medical teams as assessed by funnel plots.

Methods

A retrospective analysis was performed of data relating to emergency medical patients admitted to St James' Hospital, Dublin between 1 January 2002 and 31 December 2004, using data on discharges from hospital recorded in the hospital in-patient enquiry system. The base year was 2002 during which patients were admitted to a variety of wards under the care of a named consultant physician. In 2003, two centrally located wards were reconfigured to function as an AMAU, and all emergency patients were admitted directly to this unit. The quality indicators examined between teams were length of stay (LOS) <30 days, LOS >30 days, and readmission rates.

Results

The impact of the AMAU reduced overall hospital LOS from 7 days in 2002 to 5 days in 2003/04 (p<0.0001). There was no change in readmission rates between teams over the 3 year period, with all teams displaying expected variability within control (95%) limits. Overall, the performance in LOS, both short term and long term, was significantly improved (p<0.0001), and was less varied between medical teams between 2002 and 2003/04.

Conclusions

Introduction of the AMAU improved performance among medical teams in LOS, both short term and long term, with no change in readmissions. Funnel plots are a powerful graphical technique for presenting quality performance indicator variation between teams over time.
A systematic review of randomised clinical trials of individualised herbal medicine in any indication
Authors: Guo R , Canter P H , Ernst E
Published: October 2007

Aim

To summarise and critically evaluate the evidence from randomised clinical trials for the effectiveness of individualised herbal medicine in any indication.

Methods

Search of electronic databases and approaches to experts in the field to identify randomised, controlled clinical trials of individualised herbal medicine in any indication. Independent data extraction and assessment of methodological quality by two authors and best evidence synthesis.

Results

Three randomised clinical trials of individualised herbal medicine were identified. Statistically non-significant trends favouring active over placebo treatment in osteoarthritis of the knee probably result from large baseline differences and regression to the mean. Individualised treatment was superior to placebo in four of five outcome measures in the treatment of irritable bowel syndrome, but was inferior to standardised herbal treatment in all outcomes. Individualised herbal treatment was no better than placebo in the prevention of chemotherapy-induced toxicity.

Conclusions

There is a sparsity of evidence regarding the effectiveness of individualised herbal medicine and no convincing evidence to support the use of individualised herbal medicine in any indication.
Once weekly thyroxine treatment as a strategy to treat non-compliance
Authors: Rangan S , Tahrani A A , Macleod A F , Moulik P K
Published: October 2007

Hypothyroidism is a common disorder, which is mainly treated in primary rather than secondary care. Once daily thyroxine replacement restores euthyroidism in most patients; some patients, however, remain hypothyroid despite adequate thyroxine replacement. Non-compliance is the most common cause of lack of response to thyroxine treatment. We describe two cases of primary hypothyroidism in which daily thyroxine treatment did not restore biochemical euthyroidism but once weekly thyroxine treatment was successful. In addition we review the evidence and discuss the differential diagnosis of lack of response to thyroxine treatment. Once weekly thyroxine treatment can be a safe, well-tolerated, and effective therapy for patients with non-compliance.
A proposal justifying an alternative referral practice from primary care for three common hand surgery diagnoses
Authors: Burke Frank D , Bradley Mary J
Published: October 2007

A hand therapy primary care clinic offering advice on task modification at work and in the home and the use of splints was found to almost halve referrals of carpal tunnel syndrome from a single primary care trust. Dorsal ganglion aspiration and steroid injection for trigger digits can also be safely performed in primary care, further reducing the need for hospital care.
One-year-old male with accelerated growth and development
Authors: Kashyap Ajit Singh , Anand Kuldip Parkash , Kashyap Surekha , Arora Sumeet
Published: October 2007

A 1-year-old male child with isosexual central (gonadotropin-dependent) precocious puberty caused by hypothalamic hamartoma is reported. Details of the diagnosis based solely on neuromaging characteristics, and satisfactory results of medical treatment with gonadotropin releasing hormone agonist analogues, are highlighted.
Diversifying the options for interacting with patients
Authors: Wagner Edward H
Published: October 2007

Shared medical appointments or group visits have proven to be a promising way of providing planned care to older and chronically ill patients with two powerful added attractions—patient peer support and improved practice efficiency
Smoking in Scottish youths: personal income, parental social class and the cost of smoking
Authors: West Patrick , Sweeting Helen , Young Robert
Published: October 2007

Objective:To examine the relation of young people’s personal income and parental social class with smoking from early to mid adolescence.

Design:Longitudinal, school based, study of a cohort of 2586 eleven year-olds followed up at ages 13 and 15.

Setting:West of Scotland.

Participants:93% baseline participation, reducing to 79% at age 15.

Main outcome measures:Ever smoked (age 11), current and daily smoking (ages 13 and 15) and the proportion of income spent on tobacco (13 and 15) based on recommended retail prices of usual brands.

Results:Strong independent effects of parental social class and personal income were found at 11 years, both reducing with age. The higher incomes of lower class participants attenuated the social class effect on smoking at ages 11 and 13, but not at 15. Analysis within class groups showed variation in the effect of income on smoking, being strongest among higher class youths and weak or non-existent among lower class youths. This was despite the fact that the proportion of weekly income apparently spent on tobacco was greater among lower class youths.

Conclusions:The results confirm the importance of personal income and parental social class for youth smoking, but they also show that personal income matters more for those from higher class backgrounds. This suggests both that lower class youths have greater access to tobacco from family and friends and to cheaper sources of cigarettes from illegal sources. This complicates the relation between fiscal policies and smoking and might have the unintended consequence of increasing class differentials in youth smoking rather than the reverse.
Healthcare provider smoking cessation advice among US worker groups: Table 1
Authors: Lee David J , Fleming Lora E , McCollister Kathryn E , Caban Alberto J , Arheart Kristopher L , LeBlanc William G , Chung-Bridges Katherine , Christ Sharon L , Dietz Noella , Clark John D
Published: October 2007

Objective:Among workers in dusty occupations, tobacco use is particularly detrimental to health because of the potential synergistic effects of occupational exposures (for example, asbestos) in causing disease. This study explored the prevalence of smoking and the reported smoking cessation discussion with a primary healthcare provider (HCP) among a representative sample of currently employed US worker groups.

Methods:Pooled data from the 1997–2003 National Health Interview Survey (NHIS) were used to estimate occupation specific smoking rates (n = 135 412). The 2000 NHIS Cancer Control Module was used to determine (among employed smokers with HCP visits) the prevalence of being advised to quit smoking by occupation (n = 3454).

Results:The average annual prevalence of current smoking was 25% in all workers. In 2000, 84% of smokers reported visiting an HCP during the past 12 months; 53% reported being advised by their physician to quit smoking (range 42%–66% among 30 occupations). However, an estimated 10.5 million smokers were not advised to quit smoking by their HCP. Workers with potentially increased occupational exposure to dusty work environments (including asbestos, silica, particulates, etc), at high risk for occupational lung disease and with high smoking prevalence, had relatively low reported discussions with an HCP about smoking cessation, including farm workers (30% overall smoking prevalence; 42% told to quit), construction and extractive trades (39%; 46%), and machine operators/tenderers (34%; 44%).

Conclusion:The relatively low reported prevalence of HCP initiated smoking cessation discussion, particularly among currently employed workers with potentially synergistic occupational exposures and high current smoking prevalence, needs to be addressed through educational campaigns targeting physicians and other HCPs.
Impact of corrective health information on consumers’ perceptions of “reduced exposure” tobacco products
Authors: Biener Lois , Bogen Karen , Connolly Gregory
Published: October 2007

Objective:To determine whether providing corrective health information can reduce the tendency of consumers to believe that the implied marketing message that two “potentially reduced exposure products” (PREPs) are safer than regular cigarettes.

Design:Face-to-face interviews with smokers assigned to one of four conditions, which varied in terms of the presence or absence of health information that qualified claims made in advertising for two PREPs.

Subjects:A convenience sample of 177 smokers in Boston area.

Interventions:Health information detailed the extent to which exposure to toxins and health risks of the brands were unknown.

Main outcome measures:Respondents’ assessments of the health risks and toxicity of the two combustible PREPs, Advance and Eclipse.

Results:The health information had a modest but significant effect on ratings of health risk, and reduced perceptions that switching to the new brands would lower a smoker’s risk of cancer (OR 0.75; p<0.05). The health information had no effect on perceptions of toxicity.

Conclusions:A small dose of corrective information was effective in tempering smokers’ perceptions. A higher dose of public health campaigns would be needed to affect misperceptions likely to follow a full-scale tobacco marketing effort.
Discrete choice experiment of smoking cessation behaviour in Japan
Authors: Goto Rei , Nishimura Shuzo , Ida Takanori
Published: October 2007

Background:In spite of gradual increases in tobacco price and the introduction of laws supporting various anti-tobacco measures, the proportion of smokers in Japan’s population is still higher than in other developed nations.

Objective:To understand what information and individual characteristics drive smokers to attempt to quit smoking. These determinants will help to realise effective tobacco control policy as a base for understanding of cessation behaviour.

Method:Discrete choice experiments on a total of 616 respondents registered at a consumer monitoring investigative company.

Results:The effect of price is greater on smokers with lower nicotine dependence. For smokers of moderate and low dependency, short term health risks and health risks caused by passive smoking have a strong impact, though the existence of penalties and long term health risks have little influence on smokers’ decisions to quit. For highly dependent smokers, non-price attributes have little impact. Furthermore, the effects of age, sex and knowledge are also not uniform in accounting for smoking cessation.

Conclusion:Determinants of smoking cessation vary among levels of nicotine dependency. Therefore, how and what information is provided needs to be carefully considered when counselling smokers to help them to quit.
Community guide recommendations and state level tobacco control programmes: 1999–2004
Authors: Schmitt Carol L , Malarcher Ann M , Clark Pamela I , Bombard Jennifer M , Strauss Warren , Stillman Frances A
Published: October 2007

Objective:To identify the level of effort state tobacco control programmes and partners have expended on interventions recommended by the community guide and how those efforts have changed over time between 1999 and 2004.

Design:Longitudinal study.

Setting:United States.

Participants:State tobacco control partners, including the state health department, voluntary agencies and tobacco control coalitions.

Main outcome measure:We used the Strength of Tobacco Control survey responses in 1999, 2002 and 2004 to calculate the mean proportion of state tobacco control partners working on recommended interventions and subsequently analysed changes in effort over time.

Results:The proportion of state tobacco control partners working to promote clean indoor air legislation remained at more than 70% in all three years. The proportion working to increase taxes on tobacco rose significantly between 1999 and 2002 (from 54% to 70%), and those working to reduce patient costs for tobacco cessation treatments never exceeded 31% in any year. Use of mass media targeting youths decreased significantly in all years (from 40% to 32% to 26%), and the proportion of state tobacco control partners participating in a quitline has increased steadily and significantly in all years (from 24% to 36% to 41%). The level of effort in each area varied widely between states and over time.

Conclusions:State tobacco control partners are implementing evidence based interventions, but more focus is needed on the tobacco cessation and mass media campaign components of comprehensive tobacco control programmes.
Trends in the prevalence of smoking in Russia during the transition to a market economy
Authors: Perlman Francesca , Bobak Martin , Gilmore Anna , McKee Martin
Published: October 2007

Background:Changes in smoking, particularly an increase in women, were predicted to follow the aggressive campaigns of multinational tobacco companies in transitional Russia. However, such changes have not yet been demonstrated unequivocally.

Objective:To examine smoking trends by gender, education and area of residence.

Methods:Data from 10 rounds of the Russia Longitudinal Monitoring Survey (1992–2003), consisting of more than 3000 men and 4000 women in each round, were used. The mean reported ages of first smoking in current smokers were compared between 10-year birth cohorts.

Results:Between 1992 and 2003, smoking prevalence doubled among women from 6.9% (95% CI 6.3% to 7.6%) to 14.8% (13.9% to 15.7%) and increased among men from 57.4% (95% CI 56.0% to 58.8%) to 62.6% (61.1% to 64.1%). In both sexes, the rise was significantly greater in the least educated, markedly so in women (a doubling vs a 1.5-fold rise in the most educated). Although prevalence of smoking among women was considerably higher in Moscow and St Petersburg than in rural areas, the dramatic threefold increase in prevalence in rural women was significantly greater than in the main cities (36%, p<0.001). The mean age of first smoking was significantly lower in women born after 1960, but in men it was stable between cohorts.

Conclusions:For the first time, it has been shown unequivocally that smoking among women increased markedly during the transition to a market economy in Russia. The already high prevalence of smoking among men has continued to rise. These changes are likely to reflect the activity of the tobacco industry and provide further evidence of the harms of privatisation. Effective tobacco control policies are urgently needed.
Exposure to fine and ultrafine particles from secondhand smoke in public places before and after the smoking ban, Italy 2005
Authors: Valente Pasquale , Forastiere Francesco , Bacosi Antonella , Cattani Giorgio , Di Carlo Simonetta , Ferri Monica , Figà-Talamanca Irene , Marconi Achille , Paoletti Luigi , Perucci Carlo , Zuccaro Piergiorgio
Published: October 2007

Background:A smoking ban in all indoor public places was enforced in Italy on 10 January 2005.

Methods:We compared indoor air quality before and after the smoking ban by monitoring the indoor concentrations of fine (<2.5 μm diameter, PM2.5) and ultrafine particulate matter (<0.1 μm diameter, UFP). PM2.5and ultrafine particles were measured in 40 public places (14 bars, six fast food restaurants, eight restaurants, six game rooms, six pubs) in Rome, before and after the introduction of the law banning smoking (after 3 and 12 months). Measurements were taken using real time particle monitors (DustTRAK Mod. 8520 TSI; Ultra-fine Particles Counter-TRAK Model 8525 TSI). The PM2.5data were scaled using a correction equation derived from a comparison with the reference method (gravimetric measurement). The study was completed by measuring urinary cotinine, and pre-law and post-law enforcement among non-smoking employees at these establishments

Results:In the post-law period, PM2.5decreased significantly from a mean concentration of 119.3 μg/m3to 38.2 μg/m3after 3 months (p<0.005), and then to 43.3 μg/m3a year later (p<0.01). The UFP concentrations also decreased significantly from 76 956 particles/cm3to 38 079 particles/cm3(p<0.0001) and then to 51 692 particles/cm3(p<0.01). Similarly, the concentration of urinary cotinine among non-smoking workers decreased from 17.8 ng/ml to 5.5 ng/ml (p<0.0001) and then to 3.7 ng/ml (p<0.0001).

Conclusion:The application of the smoking ban led to a considerable reduction in the exposure to indoor fine and ultrafine particles in hospitality venues, confirmed by a contemporaneous reduction of urinary cotinine.
Trends in nicotine yield in smoke and its relationship with design characteristics among popular US cigarette brands, 1997–2005
Authors: Connolly Gregory N , Alpert Hillel R , Wayne Geoffrey Ferris , Koh Howard
Published: October 2007

Objectives:To determine whether nicotine yields in the smoke of cigarettes would show an overall increase over time or an increasing trend limited to any particular market category (eg, full flavour vs light, medium (mild) or ultralight; mentholated vs non-mentholated), manufacturer, or brand family or brand style, and whether nicotine yields in smoke would be associated with measurable trends in cigarette design.

Methods:Machine-based measures of nicotine yield in smoke and measures of cigarette design features related to nicotine delivery (ventilation, nicotine content in the tobacco rod and number of puffs), as well as market category descriptors, were obtained from annual reports filed with the Massachusetts Department of Public by tobacco manufacturers for 1997–2005. Trends in nicotine yield and its relationship with design features and market parameters were analysed with multilevel mixed-effects regression modelling procedures.

Results:A statistically significant trend was confirmed in increased nicotine yield, of 0.019 (1.1%) mg/cig/year over the period 1997–2005 and 0.029 (1.6%) mg/cig/year over the period 1998–2005. The increasing trend was observed in all major market categories (mentholated vs non-mentholated, and full flavour vs light, medium (mild) or ultralight). Nicotine yield in smoke was positively associated with nicotine concentration in the tobacco and number of puffs per cigarette, both of which showed increasing trends during the study period.

Conclusions:This study confirms increased machine-measured levels of nicotine, the addictive agent in cigarettes, in smoke, to be a result of increased nicotine in the tobacco rod and other design modifications.
Working to make an image: an analysis of three Philip Morris corporate image media campaigns: Table 1
Authors: Szczypka Glen , Wakefield Melanie A , Emery Sherry , Terry-McElrath Yvonne M , Flay Brian R , Chaloupka Frank J
Published: October 2007

Objective:To describe the nature and timing of, and population exposure to, Philip Morris USA’s three explicit corporate image television advertising campaigns and explore the motivations behind each campaign.

Methods:: Analysis of television ratings from the largest 75 media markets in the United States, which measure the reach and frequency of population exposure to advertising; copies of all televised commercials produced by Philip Morris; and tobacco industry documents, which provide insights into the specific goals of each campaign.

Findings:Household exposure to the “Working to Make a Difference: the People of Philip Morris” averaged 5.37 ads/month for 27 months from 1999–2001; the “Tobacco Settlement” campaign averaged 10.05 ads/month for three months in 2000; and “PMUSA” averaged 3.11 ads/month for the last six months in 2003. The percentage of advertising exposure that was purchased in news programming in order to reach opinion leaders increased over the three campaigns from 20%, 39% and 60%, respectively. These public relations campaigns were designed to counter negative images, increase brand recognition, and improve the financial viability of the company.

Conclusions:Only one early media campaign focused on issues other than tobacco, whereas subsequent campaigns have been specifically concerned with tobacco issues, and more targeted to opinion leaders. The size and timing of the advertising buys appeared to be strategically crafted to maximise advertising exposure for these population subgroups during critical threats to Philip Morris’s public image.
Scottish court dismisses a historic smoker’s suit
Authors: Friedman L , Daynard R
Published: October 2007

The decision in a Scottish smoker’s case,McTear v. Imperial Tobacco Limited, that there was no scientific proof of causation between the plaintiff’s smoking and his death from lung cancer, accepted all of the traditional arguments that the tobacco industry has made throughout the history of tobacco litigation, including that epidemiology is not an adequate branch of science to draw a conclusion of causation, that the tobacco industry has no knowledge that its products are dangerous to consumers, and that, despite this lack of knowledge, the plaintiff had sufficient information to make an informed decision about the dangers of smoking. This case relied on outmoded methods of reasoning and placed too great a faith in the tobacco industry’s timeworn argument that “everybody knew, nobody knows”. Further, the judge found it prejudicial that the plaintiff’s expert witnesses were not paid for their services because she was indigent, believing that the lack of payment placed in doubt their credibility and claiming that the paid tobacco expert witnesses had more motive to testify independently because they had been paid, a perverse and novel line of reasoning. TheMcTearcase contrasts unfavourably with the recent decision inUnited States v. Philip Morris, a United States decision that found the tobacco industry defendants to be racketeers, based both on the weight of a huge amount of internal tobacco industry documents showing that the tobacco industry knew their products were addictive and were made that way purposely to increase sales, and on the testimony of expert witnesses who, like those who testified inMcTear, have made the advancement of the public health their life’s work and are not “hired guns”. TheMcTearcase’s reasoning seems outdated and reminiscent of early litigation in the United States. Hopefully, it will not take courts outside of the United States 40 more years to acknowledge the current scientific knowledge about smoking and health.
Heightened bronchial hyperresponsiveness in the absence of heightened atopy in children with current wheezing and low-income status.
Authors: Mallol Javier , Castro-Rodriguez Jose A. , Cortez Eliana , Aguirre Viviana , Aguilar Pedro , Luis Barrueto
Published: October 2007

Background: Although global studies as ISAAC have provided with valuable data on the prevalence of asthma in children of Latin America, there is very few information on the relationship between asthma symptoms, pulmonary function, bronchial hyperresponsiveness and atopy in the region.

Methods: This study examined the relationship between self-reported wheezing in the last 12 months, pulmonary function, airway responsiveness and atopy in children from a low-income population neighborhood in Santiago, Chile. Two random samples (100 each) of children aged 13-14 years who participated in ISAAC Phase One were selected according to whether they have reported or not, wheezing in the last 12 months. Spirometry, methacholine bronchial challenge test and prick test were performed in all individuals.

Results: Children who reported current wheezing had significantly higher bronchial hyperresponsiveness (BHR) to methacholine as compared to those without wheezing (71.6% vs.52.6%, respectively; p=0.007,) and no significant difference was found in FEV1 (116.7„b12.3% vs. 120.3„b14.5%, respectively, p=0.11). The prevalence of atopy was not significantly different between those children who reported wheezing as compared to those who did not (44.2% vs. 42.3%; respectively, p=0.89). Multiple regression analysis showed that only BHR to methacholine (OR 2.72, 95% CI: 1.25-4.13, p=0.01) and maternal asthma (OR 3.1, 95%CI 1.2-8.3, p=0.03) were significant risk factors for current wheezing.

Conclusions: Our results support previous findings suggesting that in adolescents from unprivileged populations, self-reported current wheezing is related to BHR but not to atopy.
Assessing the Impact of Pulmonary Rehabilitation on Functional Status in Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease
Authors: Laviolette Louis , Bourbeau Jean , Bernard Sarah , Lacasse Yves , Pepin Véronique , Breton Marie-Josée , Baltzan Marc , Rouleau Michel , Maltais François
Published: October 2007

Rationale - The optimal way of assessing the impact of pulmonary rehabilitation on functional status in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is currently unknown. The minimal clinically important difference for the constant workrate cycling exercise also needs to be investigated to facilitate its interpretation.

Objective – Evaluate the changes in the 6-minute walking test and in the constant workrate cycle endurance test immediately following and 1-year after pulmonary rehabilitation, along with the importance of these changes in term of health status in patients with COPD.

Methods - Patients with COPD (age: 65  8 years, mean  SD; FEV1: 45  15 % predicted) were recruited from a multicenter prospective cohort study and were evaluated at baseline, immediately after a pulmonary rehabilitation program (n=157) and at 1 year (n=106). The 6-min walking test and the cycle endurance test were performed at each evaluation. Health status was evaluated with the St. Georges Respiratory Questionnaire.

Measurements and Main Results - Following pulmonary rehabilitation, cycle endurance time increased (198  352s, p<0.0001) and stayed over baseline values at 1 year (p<0.0001). The 6-minute walking distance also showed improvements following rehabilitation (25  52m, p<0.0001) but returned to baseline values at the 1 year follow-up. Changes in cycle endurance time were more closely associated with changes in health status than those of the 6-min walking test. A 100-200s improvement in the cycle endurance time was associated with clinically meaningful changes in the St. Georges Respiratory Questionnaire scores.

conclusions - The cycle endurance test was more responsive that the 6-min walking test to detect improvement in exercise tolerance following pulmonary rehabilitation and was also better correlated with improvements in health status. An improvement in the cycle endurance time ranging from 100-200s appeared to be clinically meaningful.
A nurse led intermediate care package in patients who have been hospitalised with an acute exacerbation of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease
Authors: Sridhar M , Taylor R , Dawson S , Roberts N J , Partridge M R
Published: October 2007

Objectives:

To determine the effects of a nurse led intermediate care programme in patients who have been hospitalised with an acute exacerbation of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (AECOPD).

Design:

Randomised controlled trial.

Setting:

Community and hospital care in west London.

Participants:

122 patients with COPD.

Intervention:

A care package incorporating initial pulmonary rehabilitation and self-management education, provision of a written, personalised COPD action plan, monthly telephone calls and 3 monthly home visits by a specialist nurse for a period of 2 years.

Main outcome measure:

Hospital readmission rate.

Secondary outcomes:

Unscheduled primary care consultations and quality of life.

Results:

There were no differences in hospital admission rates or in exacerbation rates between the two groups. Self-management of exacerbations was significantly different and the intervention group were more likely to be treated with oral steroids alone or oral steroids and antibiotics, and the initiators of treatment for exacerbations were statistically more likely to be the patients themselves. 12 patients in the control group died during the 2 year period, eight as a result of COPD, compared with six patients in the intervention group, of whom one died from COPD. This is a significant difference. When the numbers were adjusted to reflect the numbers still alive at 2 years, in the intervention group patients reported a total of 171 unscheduled contacts with their general practitioner (GP) and in the control group, 280 contacts. The number needed to treat was 0.558—ie, for every one COPD patient receiving the intervention and self-management advice, there were 1.79 fewer unscheduled contacts with the GP.

Conclusions:

An intermediate care package incorporating pulmonary rehabilitation, self-management education and the receipt of a written COPD action plan, together with regular nurse contact, is associated with a reduced need for unscheduled primary care consultations and a reduction in deaths due to COPD but did not affect the hospital readmission rate.
The relation between dietary intake of individual fatty acids, FEV1 and respiratory disease in Dutch adults
Authors: McKeever T M , Lewis S A , Cassano P A , Ocké M , Burney P , Britton J , Smit H A
Published: October 2007

Background:

A reduced dietary intake of n-3 fatty acids, in association with increased n-6 fatty acid intake, has been proposed as a potential aetiological factor for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and asthma. However, the relative importance of individual fatty acids within the n-3 and n-6 categories on this effect has not been widely investigated. We have studied the relation between individual fatty acid intakes, lung function and self-reported respiratory symptoms and diagnoses in a representative sample of more than 13 000 Dutch adults.

Methods:

Intake of individual fatty acids was estimated by a food frequency questionnaire and analysed in relation to measures of forced expiratory volume in 1 s (FEV1) and to questionnaire reported wheeze, asthma and COPD symptoms.

Results:

After adjusting for confounding, we found no protective association between individual n-3 fatty acid intakes and FEV1. Higher intakes of some n-6 fatty acids were associated with lower FEV1, this effect being most marked for c22:4 n-6 docosatetraenoic acid (reduction in FEV1 between the highest and lowest quintile of intake 54.5 ml (95% CI −81.6 to −27.4)). Most of the n-6 fatty acid effects interacted significantly with smoking, their effects being strongest in current smokers. Individual n-3 fatty acid intakes were generally associated with a higher risk of wheeze in the past year, but otherwise there was little or no association between fatty acid intake and wheeze, doctor diagnosed asthma or other respiratory symptoms.

Conclusions:

A high intake of n-3 fatty acids does not appear to protect against COPD or asthma, but a high intake of several n-6 fatty acids is associated with a significant reduction in FEV1, particularly in smokers. These findings indicate that high dietary intake of n-6 fatty acids, rather than reduced n-3 intake, may have an adverse effect on lung health.
Isolation of extracellular polysaccharides from Sclerotium rolfsii
Authors: Kritzman G. , Chet I. , Henis Y.
Published: October 2007

Five sediments of extracellular, soluble polysaccharides were extracted from washings of Sclerotium rolfsii Sacc. grown in submerged culture. Only the first sediment contained the β-(1—3)-glucan. laminarin, which was degradable by an endo β-(1—3)-glucanase extracted from S. rolfsii. The four remaining sediments were glycoproteins differing in their chemical composition and infrared absorbance spectra, and they were degradable only by a specific bacterial extracellular enzyme.
Four new species of Draba in northwestern North America
Authors: Mulligan Gerald A.
Published: October 2007

Four new species of Draba are described from material collected in northwestern North America, D. hatchiae G. A. Mulligan sp.nov. and D. murrayi G. A. Mulligan sp.nov. (2n = 48) from Alaska, and D. kluanei G. A Mulligan sp.nov. and D. scotteri G. A. Mulligan sp.nov. (n = 48) from the Yukon Territory. The four new species are fitted into a previously published key to Draba of Canada and Alaska.
Comparative field water relations of four co-occurring forest tree species
Authors: Roberts Stephen W. , Knoerr Kenneth R. , Strain Boyd R.
Published: October 2007

Diurnal patterns of stomatal resistance and leaf water potentials were measured in individuals of Ilex opaca Ait., Cornus florida L., Liriodendron tulipifera L., and Acer rubrum L. growing in close proximity on the same field site. The field measurements indicated patterns of stomatal performance and water potentials which differed diurnally, seasonally, differed between species, and differed by tissue age class in Ilex opaca. Liriodendron and Cornus developed patterns of midday stomatal closure as a drought period progressed; Ilex and Acer did not undergo marked midday stomatal closure. Young Ilex leaves consistently showed higher stomatal resistances than older leaves on the same plant early in the season; these differences were gone by the time the young leaves were about 2 months old in mid-July. Cornus developed the most negative water potentials, and Ilex showed the highest water potentials during the drought period.The measured differences suggested differences in water-use patterns among the species such that they may have temporally segregated water-related activity patterns, and may thus temporally partition the water resource.
Anther and pollen development in garden pea and cultivated lentil
Authors: Biddle Julie A.
Published: October 2007

After conventional fixation procedures and embedding in low-viscosity resin, anthers were studied using light and electron microscopy. Wall development is dicotyledonous. Sporogenous tissue undergoes one mitosis before meiosis. Entry of pollen mother cells (PMCs) into meiosis is indicated by formation of a prominent polar nucleolar cap. Cytomictic channels form between PMCs in early prophase I. In Pisum sativum the middle lamella breaks down between meiocytes. The quartets are surrounded by an extensive callose wall within which primexine starts to form. Callose dissolution is centripetal. Once microspores are released from the callose wall tectate exine development continues and the pollen cytoplasm vacuolates. Mature cytoplasm of the pollen exhibits zonation. No plastids were observed in the generative cell. Endothecial cells develop extensive thickenings. In Pisum the thickenings are primarily cellulosic whereas in Lens culinare besides cellulose some lignin may be present. Various developmental stages of the secretory tapetum have been followed. Tapetal senescence begins at about microspore mitosis. Only minor variations in anther and pollen development occur between Pisum and Lens.
Effect of the pH on the degree of autolysis of Aspergillus niger
Authors: Lahoz R. , Reyes Fuensanta , Martinez M. J. , Jimeno Luis
Published: October 2007

The effect of pH on the degree of autolysis of cultures of Aspergillus niger autolysed at different pH values has been studied. In each experiment the fungus was grown in a chemically defined medium until autolysis commenced. At that time the pH was adjusted to values of 2, 4, 6, 8, or 10 and automatically controlled at that pH throughout the autolytic period. A positive correlation (r = 0.77) between pH and the degree of autolysis was found. Linear regression analysis indicated that the data were fitted by a line of slope 2.53 and an ordinate intercept of 41.83.
Intracellular distribution of α-galactosidase in leaves of Cucurbita pepo
Authors: Thomas Brian , Webb John A.
Published: October 2007

The intracellular distribution of α-galactosidase in leaves of Cucurbita pepo was studied at different developmental stages using tissue strips, homogenates, and isolated protoplasts. About 85% of the total activity was found in the 500 g supernatant after tissues were homogenized either in water, in buffer at pH 5.6 or at pH 7.0, or in buffer containing 0.8 M KCl. Isolated protoplasts contained less than 10% of the total activity which was confined to the 20 000 g supernatant after lysis. p-Nitrophenyl-α-D-galactoside was readily hydrolysed when incubated with leaf strips but less than 3% of α-galactosidase could be leached from strips held for 4 h in 100 mM phosophate buffer or in buffer containing either 0.8 M KCl, 1 mM EDTA, or 1 mM dithioerythritol. It is concluded that at all stages of leaf development a high proportion of α-galactosidase is located in the exocellular region, not strongly bound either to the outer surface of the plasmalemma or to the cell wall but prevented from diffusing through the wall matrix by some physical attribute such as molecular size. Enzyme release occurred only following breakage or enzymatic digestion of the wall. The in vivo properties of the exocellular enzyme in leaf strips were compared with those of three molecular forms of α-galactosidase (LI, LII, and LIII) which were partially purified from mature leaves. The exocellular enzyme was active over a broad pH range with optima at pH 3.0 and pH 6.0; this resembles a combination of pH optima for LI and LIII. Inhibition by Cu2+ and p-chloromercuribenzoate resembled that for LIII and LII, respectively. Galactose and galactinol at a 5 mM concentration were 25–30% inhibitory for all enzyme preparations; melibiose, raffinose, and stachyose were very weakly inhibitory. The function of an exocellular α-galactosidase and its bearing on the transport of galactosylsucrose oligosaccharides to and from the minor veins of C. pepo are discussed.
Fire history and vegetation pattern of coniferous forests in Jasper National Park, Albert
Authors: Tande Gerald F.
Published: October 2007

Periodicity, location, extent, and severity of fires from 1665 to 1975 were determined for a 43 200-ha area of Jasper National Park using fire-scar dendrochronology. Before fire suppression began in 1913, there were 46 fires with a mean fire return interval (MFRI) of 5.5 years. Twenty-four fires each covered more than 500 ha and had a MFRI of 8.4 years. Fires covering more than 50% of the area had a MFRI of 65.5 years. Present forests originated primarily after the fires of 1889, 1847, and 1758. Most fires between 1665 and 1913 were low to medium intensity, but higher intensities did occur. Interaction of fire periodicity, intensity, and extent determined age, size, density, crown height, and temporal frequency of forest patches. Stands varied from even-age- to multiple-age-classes intermingled over short distances. Multiple-aged stands dominated lower elevations and were maintained by frequent removal, by fire, of low organic matter accumulations. Large, continuous, even-aged forests occurred at mid to high elevations where mesic moisture regimes allowed greater fuel accumulations, and consequently, more intense fires during droughts. Fire periodicity and extent have declined since 1913, accompanied by reduced structural heterogeneity of the forests.
Pollen development in maize plants subjected to molybdenum deficiency
Authors: Agarwala S. C. , Chatterjee C. , Sharma P. N. , Sharma C. P. , Nautiyal N.
Published: October 2007

A reduction in the size of tassels, male flowers, and anthers resulted from molybdenum deficiency in maize. In molybdenum-deficient plants, anthesis was suppressed or delayed and the anthers had fewer and smaller pollen grains that lacked dense cytoplasmic contents, appeared shrivelled, and had poor viability. Because of molybdenum deficiency, there was a decrease in the activity of starch phosphorylase in mature and freshly shed pollen grains and decreases in the activities of invertase and acid phosphatase at all the five stages at which pollen grains were assayed for the enzymes. The activities of catalase and peroxidase were increased by molybdenum deficiency at all five stages and that of ribonuclease at four out of the five stages of pollen development.