bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Ecological and economic assessment of prescribed burning impacts in semi-arid pastoral lands of northern Australia
Authors: Dyer Rodd , Smith Mark Stafford
Published: November 2003

Pastoral managers in savannas face difficult decisions about trading off short-term use of grass biomass for animal production against its longer term use as fuel to manage tree–grass balances with fire. This study develops a model to represent the interactions between seasonal variability, fire behaviour, tree response, pasture growth and condition, grazing utilisation and animal productivity in a grazed savanna ecosystem. It successfully integrates simplified versions of several existing models, results of local research and expert knowledge to permit economic evaluation of tradeoffs given various fire treatments. The modelling framework also enabled the effects of wildfire events to be simulated and allowed fire and livestock management costs and revenue to be quantified. Applied to one site and climate sequence, the initial results assuming constant stocking rates show the importance of burning for the long-term maintenance of productivity, and suggest that some level of late dry season fire is needed for this. Net present values of applying different fire regimes over different time horizons emphasise the factors that pastoralists must take into account in making decisions about preferred fire regimes.
Experimental comparison of four remote sensing techniques to map tropical savanna fire-scars using Landsat-TM imagery
Authors: Bowman D. M. J. S. , Zhang Yue , Walsh Angie , Williams R. J.
Published: November 2003

A landscape-scale fire experiment, conducted over two consecutive dry seasons in a large tract of tropical savanna in northern Australia, was used to evaluate four methods to map fire scars apparent on Landsat-TM imagery: (i) systematic visual; (ii) semi-automated; (iii) automated; and (iv) change detection. All of the methods showed rapid fading of the fire scars. Overall, the automated and visual methods were able to discriminate burnt areas for longer than the other methods. However, the automated method also falsely identified fire-scars on between 5 and 20% of the unburnt catchments prior to the experimental late dry season fire treatments. One cause of the fading appears related to the increased flushing of tree canopies on burnt areas, although the spatially patchy recovery within and between catchments points to the importance of other factors such as the recovery of the ground layer. It appears that Landsat-TM imagery cannot be used to reliably determine the spatial extent and timing of fires in environments with rapid post-fire recovery, such as tropical savannas, thereby limiting the utility of this data source for fine-scale ecological studies.
Monitoring the impacts of fire regimes on vegetation in northern Australia: an example from Kakadu National Park
Authors: Edwards Andrew , Kennett Rod , Price Owen , Russell-Smith Jeremy , Spiers Greg , Woinarski John
Published: November 2003

We describe the rationale, methodology and preliminary results from a major monitoring program in Kakadu National Park, northern Australia. The program aims to assess fire regimes, their impacts upon biodiversity, and the consequences and efficacy of fire management. The program comprises two complementary elements—mapping of fire histories based upon interpretation of satellite imagery, and assessment of vegetation at a large series of permanent monitoring plots. The program commenced formally in 1995, at which time establishment and baseline sampling of vegetation in 134 plots was conducted, with re-sampling proposed at 5-year intervals up to 2010. The monitoring program has an estimated annual cost of about $A140�000 (around 1% of the total annual budget of the Park).
Over the period 1995–2000, the mean annual extent of burning was 40.3%, a marginal reduction in extent from the previous 15 years, particularly for late dry season fires in lowland habitats. From the baseline (1995) and subsequent re-sampling (2000) of the vegetation plots, 963 plant taxa have been recorded. The power of the program to detect change in the frequency or abundance of individual species was poor, especially for ground-layer species, largely because of typically substantial variability in abundance across plots and sampling events, and because of the high proportion of species recorded from few samples. Notwithstanding this constraint, five tree species (of 47 recorded from sufficient samples to test), nine shrub species (from 121) and 27 ground-layer species (from 111) showed significant change in abundance between the baseline and subsequent sampling. However when species were grouped into strata and life-form categories, major changes were evident over this 5�year period, particularly with increases in cover of trees and shrubs. Such changes were related to a range of environmental and fire regime parameters of the plots, with increase in woody cover but reduction in cover and species richness of herbs in those plots experiencing lower frequency of fires.
On the sensitivity of returns to seniority to the measurement of earnings
Authors: Lefranc Arnaud
Published: December 2003

This paper examines the incidence of measurement error in wage data on the estimation of returns to seniority. Earnings surveys collect wage data through questions pertaining to earnings and hours over a given period of time (year, week) or through direct reports of hourly wages. Comparing results for different wage variables from the panel study of income dynamics (PSID), it is shown that estimated returns to seniority are very sensitive to the type of wage data used. Estimates based on yearly reports are typically twice as large as those using direct reports. Two sources account for this discrepancy. First, the inclusion of earnings from secondary jobs and overtime in the PSID annual earnings data tends to overestimate returns to seniority. Second, hourly wages computed from yearly measures include important measurement errors that tend to bias coefficients upward.
Knowing as desiring. Mythic knowledge and the knowledge journey in communities of practitioners
Authors: Gherardi Silvia
Published: December 2003

Why do people and their organizations seek out knowledge? Most of the recurrent explanations emphasise the instrumental use of knowledge: in order to solve problems, to gain competitive advantages, to exploit innovation commercially, or to contribute to the wellbeing of future generations. But besides the rationality and purposiveness of knowledge‐gathering, there is another aspect that may be undervalued in organization studies: that of a search for knowledge driven by a love of knowledge for its own sake. Knowledge as an end in itself motivates people and organizations. In order to explore how desire for knowledge may operate in organizing, the paper refers to the literary figure of the “knowledge journey” and to one of the greatest of all travellers: Ulysses.
The ambivalent role of English in Brazilian politics
Authors: Rajagopalan Kanavillil
Published: December 2003

The English language plays a pivotal role in the politics of language as it is currently playing itself out in Brazil. People at once like it and loathe it, in what may seem to be a most paradoxical reaction to its growing presence in the daily lives of its citizens. Closer inspection reveals, however, that the ambivalence has to do with the difficult geo–politics of the region and the contradictions it has engendered through the years. The paper discusses the political import of a controversial bill currently being debated in the upper house of Brazil's legislature. The bill seeks to curb the use of English in all but a handful of situations. Reactions from the public at large, as well as – interestingly enough – some professional linguists who have taken a stance on the issue, reflect the ambivalence just referred to.
“Who is it that can tell me who I am?” The quest for ethnicity in the Anglo communities of Buenos Aires
Authors: Cortes–Conde Florencia
Published: December 2003

This study examines discourse on communal identity that accompanies language shift processes. In a study carried out in 1990, self–ascribed Anglo–Argentines responded to a lengthy questionnaire concerning what makes an Anglo–Argentine different from either of its perceived component identities – the Anglo and the Argentine. The study found a diffused boundary that maps a multi–layered self. Responses presented an emotional perspective of how “I feel” as an Anglo–Argentine and also maximum level of abstraction of how “Anglos are.” What is surprising about the study of the Anglo–Argentines is that it demonstrates that not even a world language can maintain its speakers’ communal identity.
“English is like the dollar”: hard currency ideology and the status of English in Peru
Authors: Niño–Murcia Mercedes
Published: December 2003

This paper presents observations from an agro–pastoral village in the Andes, at the periphery of Lima and from an upper–class shopping area, and discusses attitudes toward the state–driven promotion of English. In these communities, a nearly universal ideology in Peru manifests itself in the belief that “hard currency” cultural capital in the form of English competence is needed for technological advancement, employment opportunities, national progress and international travel. In education, there are increasing but ineffectual investments in public schools and a mushrooming private school industry. The struggle for linguistic distinction generates a low level language war, where colonially rooted anxieties about race and class come into conflict with popular aspirations for social mobility.
English in the Ecuadorian commercial context
Authors: Alm Cecilia Ovesdotter
Published: December 2003

This paper presents a study completed in Quito, Ecuador's capital, in 2002. It investigates the attitudinal perceptions toward English in advertising in this context, as well as the actual distribution of English in magazine ads and commercial names of business establishments. The findings are the result of four data collection procedures: first, a questionnaire administered to advertising experts; second, an analysis of business names in ten shopping centers; third, an analysis of advertisements in Ecuadorian magazines; and fourth, an interview survey with the same group of advertising experts. The results are analyzed both quantitatively and qualitatively, with the aim to provide an attitudinal sociolinguistic profile of English in Ecuador from a descriptive, comparative and critical perspective. Adopting the socioeconomic framework presented by Bourdieu (1991), English is found to represent commercial capital. Moreover, English is shown to be highly stratified according to socioeconomic strata, and to function as a segmentizer and a gatekeeper on the Ecuadorian market. Thus, if English is to succeed in functioning as empowerment (cf. Friedrich, 2001) among the disadvantaged in Ecuador in the future, affirmative action is needed, especially within the educational sector.
The educational role and status of English in Brazil
Authors: Bohn Hilario I.
Published: December 2003

The teaching of English in Brazil is part of the larger project of foreign language education in general. In the context of growing use of and demand for English as an international language along with recognition of a growing need for the maintenance of local identities associated with local languages, Brazilian language teachers are faced with the challenge of making the classroom more responsive to the social reality. An obstacle to change in pedagogy is the lack of a local and national foreign language teaching policy. This paper explores historical and national scenarios that contribute to the status quo, considers the role of English in the Brazilian pedagogical and linguistic landscape, and puts forward proposals for language teaching professionals to take into account in the process of articulating a national foreign language education that does justice to the learners, their first languages, and the languages being taught.
English in Argentina: attitudes of MBA students
Authors: Friedrich Patricia
Published: December 2003

This paper addresses the issue of English in South America through the investigation of attitudes towards English by a group of MBA students in Argentina. To investigate their attitudes, a survey questionnaire was administered. Its analysis and the relationship between attitudes and the socio–political environment are explored in this paper. The findings suggest a close association between English and the job market, while they also indicate a lack of sociolinguistic awareness vis–à–vis non–native users of English elsewhere. As part of the discussion, I make connections between the historical moment of Argentina and the perceptions of the role of a world language such as English. The paper concludes with a call for a more conscientious inclusion of issues pertaining to the sociolinguistics of the global spread of English as part of the classroom curriculum.
English in Colombia: a sociolinguistic profile
Authors: Velez–Rendon Gloria
Published: December 2003

This paper intends to make a contribution to the study of the spread of the English language in Colombia. To characterize this social and cultural context, I draw a sociolinguistic profile following the framework provided by Berns (1990, 1992). Although English has no official status in Colombia and its functional range is still restricted, it has expanded at a pace not experienced before. There is a growing consensus that English has a role to play in Colombia's social and economical advancement in the international arena. This is evidenced in the educational policies and programs contributing to securing a prominent position for English in the national curriculum as well as in the unprecedented boom of the English language teaching industry.

The paper begins by providing an overview of Colombia and its linguistic makeup, briefly tracing the presence of the English language from the eighteenth century to date. Then it goes on to characterize the users and uses of English documenting how the interpersonal, instrumental, and creative/innovative functions are manifested in this particular setting. Next, the paper describes the attitudinal range towards the English language, its speakers, and its study as well as the process of borrowing, adaptation, and innovation. It concludes by highlighting the need for additional research to further define this particular socio–cultural milieu of learning and use of English. It is argued that further research has a central role in informing the determination of relevant and appropriate models for language teaching in Colombia.
English in Argentina: a sociolinguistic profile
Authors: Nielsen Paul Maersk
Published: December 2003

The status of English as a global language has made it not only widely available in Argentina but increasingly necessary to the average Argentinian as well. In the past decade those seeking a job or a promotion or those pursing a graduate university education have become acutely aware that proficiency in English is an essential requirement. As a symbol of prestige and modernity, it has become a ‘means of social ascension’ (Friedrich, 2000: 222). This paper sets out to provide insight into the dimenisons and dynamics of English in Argentina by drawing a sociolinguistic profile of this language in a South American setting. It begins with an overview of the languages and cultures represented in Argentina and the historical presence, contact and availability of English from the eighteenth century on. It describes the users and uses of English in terms of Kachru's (1992) framework, and Argentinian attitudes towards English. The sources of the availability and status of English are traced to the strong cultural legacy of the British which has influenced the teaching of English, its contemporary presence and prestige, and to the shift of economic power to the USA in tandem with developments in communication technologies.
Reasons, Robots and the Extended Mind
Authors: Clark Andy
Published: November 2003

A suitable project for the new Millenium is to radically reconfigure our image of human rationality. Such a project is already underway, within the Cognitive Sciences, under the umbrellas of work in Situated Cognition, Distributed and De‐centralized Cognition, Real‐world Robotics and Artificial Life. Such approaches, however, are often criticized for giving certain aspects of rationality too wide a berth. They focus their attention on such superficially poor cousins as ‘adaptive behaviour’, ‘ecologically sound perception‐action routines’, ‘fast and frugal heuristics’ and ‘fast, fluent real‐time real‐world action control’. Is this robbery or revelation? Has ‘embodied, embedded’ cognitive science simply lost sight of the very phenomena it was meant to explain? Or are we finally seeing rationality aright, as fully continuous with various forms of simpler, ecologically situated, adaptive response? I distinguish two ways of developing the ‘embodied, embedded’ approach. The first, which does indeed threaten to lose sight of the key targets, is fully committed to a doctrine of biological cognitive incrementalism according to which full‐scale human rationality is reached, rather directly, by some series of tweaks to basic biological modes of adaptive response. The second depicts human capacities for advanced reason as at best the indirect products of such a process. Such capacities, it is argued, depend heavily upon the effects of a special kind of hybridization in which human brains enter into an increasingly potent cascade of genuinely symbiotic relationships with knowledge‐rich artifacts and technologies. This latter approach, I finally suggest, does better justice to our peculiar profile, which combines deep biological continuity with an equally deep cognitive discontinuity.
A Logically Transparent Approach to Discourse Reporting
Authors: Washington Corey , Biro John
Published: November 2003

In this essay we develop a theory of discourse reports. The theory provides a common set of structural and interpretive principles that together account for the truth conditions of direct, indirect and mixed reports. A distinguishing feature of our view is the assumption that the complement sentence of a report divides exclusively and exhaustively into regions that characterize the content of the reported utterance and regions that characterize the form of the utterance. This assumption implies that mixed reports do not imply full direct or indirect reports. We discuss a classical David‐sonian proposal by Herman Cappelen and Ernest Lepore which conflicts with our theory on this latter point and show that it is unable to account for many of the phenomena we discuss.
The Myth of Jones and the Return of Subjectivity
Authors: Levin Janet
Published: November 2003

This paper discusses a number of recent criticisms of ‘theoretical’ accounts of mental state concepts—that is, accounts which take these concepts to derive their meanings from the roles played by mental states in the explanation of behavior: in particular, I evaluate the claim that (insofar as they are ‘third‐personal’ or ‘theoretical’) these concepts cannot individuate mental states that intuitively are distinct, and the claim that they cannot account for what goes on in the ascription of mental states to oneself. I argue (with reference to what may be the originating text of this approach to mental state concepts, Sellars’s ‘Empiricism and the Philosophy of Mind’) that, although these criticisms may have some plausibility when directed against theoretical accounts of experiential or qualitative states, they have little plausibility when directed against theoretical accounts of intentional states. In so arguing, moreover, I try to show the shortcomings of various recent ‘first‐person’ or ‘subjectivist’ views.
Pivotal Buyers and Bargaining Position
Authors: Raskovich Alexander
Published: November 2003

Securing sales to a large buyer can be pivotal to a supplier's decision to produce. While conventional wisdom suggests that being pivotal improves a buyer's bargaining position, the opposite is shown in a multilateral bargaining model. If other buyers' payments fall short of costs, a pivotal buyer must cover the shortfall or forfeit consumption. This affords leverage that the supplier lacks when bargaining with non‐pivotal buyers. The analysis illuminates contracting in markets with high fixed costs, such as cable television programming, motion pictures, and large‐scale project finance, and has implications for the FCC's horizontal ownership limits on cable system operators.
A Search Model Where Consumers Choose Quantity Based on Expected Price
Authors: Buccirossi Paolo
Published: November 2003

I describe a price game in which consumers face search costs and base their quantity decision on the expected price. Because of search costs, the choice of the firm they will buy from is described by a random process. I show that the expected equilibrium price is above the monopoly price. This result does not change if demand comes from a small share of perfectly informed consumers with zero search costs.
Differentiation and Competition in HMO Markets
Authors: Dranove David , Gron Anne , Mazzeo Michael J.
Published: November 2003

This paper examines how differentiation among Health Maintenance Organizations (HMOs) affects local market competition. Most markets for HMOs appear sufficiently unconcentrated; however, differences among HMOs may make competition less intense than the number of competitors would suggest. To investigate this possibility, we distinguish HMOs that serve only local markets from those that operate regional or national networks. We analyze how HMOs of one type affect the profitability of the other using an equilibrium model of entry and product choice. While the two types of HMOs have strong competitive effects within segments, the competitive effect of differentiated firms is negligible.
The Relative Importance of Actual and Potential Competition: Empirical Evidence From the Pharmaceuticals Market
Authors: Bergman Mats A. , Rudholm Niklas
Published: November 2003

We study actual and potential competition and other factors that determine price paths of brand‐name drugs in the Swedish pharmaceuticals market. The results indicate that the price of the incumbent product is lowered by potential competition, entry of (additional) generics, and the introduction of a so‐called reference‐price system. We also identify a ‘ratchet’ effect, through which price regulation makes entry‐deterring limit‐pricing credible.
Insurer‐hospital bargaining: negotiated discounts in post‐deregulation connecticut
Authors: Sorensen Alan T.
Published: November 2003

This paper uses unique data from the state of Connecticut to examine discounting patterns in the state's hospital industry for the years following deregulation (1995‐1998). The data provide a rare opportunity to study payer‐level differences in negotiated discounts for hospital services. In addition to presenting descriptive evidence on how discounts vary across payers, payer types and hospital types, this study uses matched revenue data to analyze and empirically estimate the economic determinants of discount magnitudes. Payer size appears to affect bargaining power, but the economic significance of the effect is small. Much larger than the effect of payer size is the influence of payers' abilities to ‘move market share’ by channeling patients to hospitals with which favorable discounts have been negotiated.
Tyre price dispersion across retail outlets in the UK
Authors: Delgado Juan , Waterson Michael
Published: November 2003

We investigate price dispersion in a retail market (car tyres) characterised by outlets each selling a range of products, some of which are manufactured by their owners. Consumers face substantial price dispersion across outlets even for very tightly defined products. We show that this price dispersion has systematic components relating to retailer‐manufacturer interactions. One specific result is that chains owned by manufacturers sell other manufacturers' tyres on average nearly 20% more expensively than do independent stores and over 11% more expensively than their own equivalent branded product.
Exploring Alternative Measures of Welfare in the Absence of Expenditure Data
Authors: Sahn David E. , Stifel David
Published: December 2003

We consider an asset‐based alternative to the standard use of expenditures in defining well‐being and poverty. Our motivation is to see if there exist simpler and less demanding ways to collect data to measure economic welfare and rank households. This is particularly important in poor regions where there is limited capacity to collect consumption, expenditure and price data. We evaluate an index derived from a factor analysis on household assets using multipurpose surveys from several countries. We find that the asset index is a valid predictor of a crucial manifestation of poverty—child health and nutrition. Indicators of relative measurement error show that the asset index is measured as a proxy for long‐term wealth with less error than expenditures. Analysts may thus prefer to use the asset index as an explanatory variable or as a means of mapping economic welfare to other living standards and capabilities such as health and nutrition.
Unemployment Expectations: The Impact of Private Information on Income Uncertainty
Authors: Curtin Richard T.
Published: December 2003

The formation and accuracy of unemployment expectations are investigated in this paper. Unemployment expectations were found to contain predictive information that was not captured by past trends in unemployment and other economic variables. The predictive content of expectations was based on private information about future unemployment and overall economic prospects. The data indicated a greater consistency with the rational expectations hypothesis than with adaptive, extrapolative, and error‐learning models, although households did not optimally use all available information. The data indicate that unemployment expectations are to an important extent derived from more general expectations about the future performance of the economy.
A patch test study of 27 crude drugs commonly used in Chinese topical medicaments
Authors: Chen Hsuan‐Hsiang , Sun Chee‐Ching , Tseng Mei‐Ping , Hsu Chih‐Jung
Published: December 2003

Chinese topical medicaments (CTMs) are commonly used in Taiwan and in Southeast Asia. However, a systematic evaluation of contact sensitization potential from CTM has not been carried out to our knowledge. This study was undertaken to investigate the incidence of contact sensitivity to the components of CTM in patients with contact dermatitis from CTM. A screening series of 27 crude drugs most commonly used in CTM as well as a modified European standard series was patch tested in 30 patients. The herbs with the most frequent positive reactions were Flos Caryophylli ( ), Radix Angelicae Pubescentis (

), Cortex Cinnamomi (

), Cortex Radix Acanthopanacis (

), Caulis Impatientis (

), Resina Draconis/Sanguis Draconis (

), Fructus Cnidii (

), Radix Gentiana Macrophyllae (

), and Rhizoma Ligustici Chuanxiong (

). Concomitant allergy to colophonium was found in most of these positive reactions. Reducing the concentration and simplifying the compositions of these components, as well as replacement with those of low allergenicity in CTM, such as Rhizoma Arisaematis (

), Herba Lycopodii (

), Radix Cyathulae Officinalis (

), Rhizoma Pinelliae (

), Radix Angelicae Dahuricae (

), Herba Dendrobii (

), Secretio Moschus (

), and Stigmata Croci (

), may be advocated. A precise labelling of the dosage of each component and the exact chemical compounds in CTM products could further improve the safety and therapeutic effects of CTM in the future.
Specific immunoglobulin E in patients with immediate persulfate hypersensitivity
Authors: Aalto‐Korte Kristiina , Mäkinen‐Kiljunen Soili
Published: December 2003

Persulfate salts may cause contact urticaria, allergic and irritant contact dermatitis, rhinitis and asthma. The mechanism of the immediate reactions has been unclear. Positive prick test, skin application and nasal and bronchial provocations identify immediate allergy. There is only 1 previous report of specific binding of immunoglobulin E (IgE) to ammonium persulfate demonstrated by radioallergosorbent test (RAST). In the present study, fresh 2% ammonium and potassium persulfate solutions were used for prick testing. Patients with positive prick tests were further evaluated with open skin application, immunospot and RAST. Prick testing with persulfate salts was performed in a total of 138 patients. 7 patients had a positive reaction to at least 1 persulfate salt. 6 of the patients had had skin symptoms, urticaria, eczema or angioedema, because of contact with hair bleaches. Open application on healthy skin was performed in 4 patients, and 3 out of them had urticarial reactions. The sera of 5 patients were investigated with immunospot and RAST. On immunospot, specific binding of IgE to human serum albumin (HSA)‐conjugated ammonium and potassium persulfate was found in 2 patients. 1 immunospot‐positive patient also had a positive RAST to ammonium persulfate–HSA conjugate. The mechanism of immediate hypersensitivity to persulfates thus seems to be IgE‐mediated at least in some patients.
Patch testing with oxidized R‐(+)‐limonene and its hydroperoxide fraction
Authors: Matura Mihály , Goossens An , Bordalo Olivia , Garcia‐Bravo Begoña , Magnusson Kerstin , Wrangsjö Karin , Karlberg Ann‐Therese
Published: December 2003

R‐(+)‐Limonene is an ubiquitous allergen in our environment. It is one of the most widely used fragrance materials not only in fine fragrances but also most often incorporated in domestic and occupational products. Although the non‐oxidized R‐(+)‐limonene itself is not allergenic, it easily forms allergenic products due to autoxidation during handling and storage. 2273 patients at 4 dermatological clinics in Europe were patch tested between 1997 and 1999 in 2 steps. First, the oxidation mixture of R‐(+)‐limonene and 1 selected allergen fraction of the mixture, the limonene hydroperoxides, were tested in 2 different vehicles in consecutive patients. A diverging frequency of positive patch test reactions was observed in the 4 clinics. 3·8% of the consecutive patients tested reacted to oxidized R‐(+)‐limonene in 2 clinics, 6·5% in the 3rd, whereas 0·3% in the 4th clinic. In 2 of the centres, different but significant concomitant positive response rates to other allergens were observed; e.g. to fragrance materials and to colophonium. However, in the total test population, 57% of the limonene‐allergic subjects did not react to any of the fragrance allergy markers used in the standard series. In the 2nd step, patients showing positive reactions were retested, also including additional separate allergens of the limonene oxidation mixture (carvone and limonene oxide). 60% of the limonene‐allergic patients showed positive results at retesting. The limonene hydroperoxide fraction was proved to be the most important allergen of the oxidation mixture, showing positive reactions in around 60% of the limonene‐allergic patients at both test sessions. Testing limonene oxide and carvone separately resulted in very few positive reactions. 3% oxidized R‐(+)‐limonene in non‐stabilized petrolatum is most suitable when using only 1 test preparation for diagnosis of contact allergy to oxidized limonene. Our data give clinical support to the European classification of R‐(+)‐limonene, containing oxidation products, as a skin sensitizer.
Assessment of irritant skin reactions using electrical impedance – a comparison between 2 laboratories
Authors: Kuzmina Natalia , Duval Celine , Johnsson Stina , Boman Anders , Lindberg Magnus , Emtestam Lennart
Published: December 2003

To assess interlaboratory variability in the measurement of skin electrical impedance (IMP), we evaluated irritant reactions to sodium lauryl sulfate (SLS) (2%) and nonanoic acid (NAA) (40%) in 2 laboratories. We studied the patch test responses in 40 healthy male and female volunteers between 20 and 30 years of age (20 in each laboratory) with an instrument for measuring IMP. 2 other bioengineering methods and visual scoring were also used to facilitate further illumination of any findings. A strict protocol including all details of the measurement procedure was carefully implemented in both laboratories. The skin reactions were evaluated at 23 h and at 3, 7 and 14 days after exposure. Our findings show that both irritants caused distinct dynamic responses detectable with the bioengineering techniques. Interestingly, the IMP baseline values varied between the 2 laboratories. Moreover, at early stages in the development of irritation (day 1), the irritants induced changes in IMP indices in the opposite direction, which accords with the concept of various IMP patterns of contact dermatitis caused by different irritants. Although the absolute values of IMP differed in both laboratories, the dynamic response patterns were the same.
Citral a fragrance allergen and irritant
Authors: Heydorn S. , Menné T. , Andersen K. E. , Bruze M. , Svedman C. , White I. R. , Basketter D. A.
Published: December 2003

Citral is a well known contact allergen and a contact irritant. Routine patch testing in the past may have been restricted because of possible irritant (IR) patch test responses. 586 consecutive patients, with hand eczema, were patch tested with a selection of fragrances including citral 2% petrolatum and the European standard series. 28 of the patients showed a positive patch test reaction (+ to +++) to citral and 82 at least 1 IR patch test reaction and no positive patch test reaction to citral. A statistically significant association between a positive patch test reaction to citral and positive patch test reactions to other fragrances compared with IR reactions (n = 82) was established. The difference regarding fragrance history found between those with IR and positive reactions to citral was not significant. Citral could be an allergen and/or irritant, worthy of further more extensive studies.
Nickel, chromium and cobalt in consumer products: revisiting safe levels in the new millennium
Authors: Basketter David A. , Angelini Gianni , Ingber Arieh , Kern Petra S. , Menné Torkil
Published: December 2003

The transition metals nickel (Ni), chromium (Cr) and cobalt (Co) are common causes of allergic contact dermatitis (ACD). Given the high frequency with which these allergens can be associated with hand eczema in those responsible for domestic work, it has been suggested that contamination of household consumer products with these metals may be of relevance to the causation/chronicity of hand dermatitis. Dose–response studies using 48 h occlusive patch test conditions in sensitized individuals show that ≥90% of sensitized patients fail to react below 1 p.p.m., even on irritated skin. Assessment under more realistic exposure conditions has shown that in the presence of irritants and/or following repeated exposures, such individuals rarely react to levels below 10 p.p.m. On the basis of this information, it was recommended a decade ago that household (and other consumer) products should not contain more than 5 p.p.m. of each of Ni, Cr or Co and that, for an even greater degree of protection, the ultimate target level should be 1 p.p.m. The data generated since the original recommendations were made serve to reinforce the validity of these recommendations. Indeed, it is our view that typically the level of each of these transition metals should not normally exceed 1 p.p.m. Then, where consumer products meet this guideline fully, modern quantitative risk assessment shows clearly that elicitation of ACD is highly improbable, and the chance of the induction of sensitization is even lower.
Nordic Occupational Skin Questionnaire (NOSQ‐2002): a new tool for surveying occupational skin diseases and exposure
Authors: Susitaival P , Flyvholm M.‐A. , Meding B , Kanerva L , Lindberg M , Svensson Å , Ólafsson J. H.
Published: December 2003

Occupational skin diseases are among the most frequent work‐related diseases in industrialized countries. Good occupational skin disease statistics exist in few countries. Questionnaire studies are needed to get more data on the epidemiology of occupational skin diseases. The Nordic Occupational Skin Questionnaire Group has developed a new questionnaire tool – Nordic Occupational Skin Questionnaire (NOSQ‐2002) – for surveys on work‐related skin disease and exposures to environmental factors. The 2 NOSQ‐2002 questionnaires have been compiled by using existing questionnaires and experience. NOSQ‐2002/SHORT is a ready‐to‐use 4‐page questionnaire for screening and monitoring occupational skin diseases, e.g. in a population or workplace. All the questions in the short questionnaire (NOSQ‐2002/SHORT) are included in the long version, NOSQ‐2002/LONG, which contains a pool of questions to be chosen according to research needs and tailored to specific populations. The NOSQ‐2002 report includes, in addition to the questionnaires, a comprehensive manual for researchers on planning and conducting a questionnaire survey on hand eczema and relevant exposures. NOSQ‐2002 questionnaires have been compiled in English and translated into Danish, Swedish, Finnish and Icelandic. The use of NOSQ‐2002 will benefit research on occupational skin diseases by providing more standardized data, which can be compared between studies and countries.
Utility of historical vehicle‐control data in the interpretation of the local lymph node assay
Authors: Basketter D. A. , Gilmour N. J. , Briggs D. , Ullmann L. G. , Gerberick G. F. , Ryan C. A. , Dearman R. J. , Kimber I.
Published: December 2003

The accepted approach to the interpretation of local lymph node assay (LLNA) data requires comparison of responses in the test groups with background activity found in concurrent vehicle‐treated controls. However, of established value in the interpretation of toxicity test data is the use of historical control values that provide one criterion against which to judge the integrity of individual experiments. Specifically, the availability of robust and relevant historical control data permits examination of whether, in any individual experiment, control values fall within the expected range. With the most commonly used vehicle employed in the LLNA, acetone/olive oil (4 : 1) (v/v), the mean values, standard deviations and normal ranges are increasingly well established for a given laboratory, although there is some variation between laboratories, particularly with regard to expected ranges. Against this background, it is possible to identify (and, if appropriate, eliminate) a concurrent vehicle‐control value that falls well outside the expected range. To explore critically the potential merits of this approach, one specific example is examined in detail.
Angioedema and dysphagia caused by contact allergy to inhaled budesonide
Authors: Pirker C. , Mišić A. , Frosch P. J.
Published: December 2003

Inhaled corticosteroids may cause various adverse effects ranging from irritation to severe anaphylactic reactions and systemic contact dermatitis. We report a 43‐year‐old woman who developed sore throat, swelling of the lips and oral cavity and dysphagia, 2 weeks after the use of budesonide spray (Budefat®) for treatment of bronchial asthma. The symptoms occurred with a delay of 3–4 h after the treatment ×2 daily. There were no immediate reactions on prick and intracutaneous testing with the commercial product used by the patient. However, marked pruritic infiltration developed within 24 h, progressing to coalescing eczematous lesions over the following 2 days. In addition, severe oedema of the right upper eyelid was observed. On patch testing, budesonide was strongly positive at day 2 and 3 in a concentration ranging from 1% to 10 p.p.m. (in petrolatum). Other corticosteroids of group A, B, C and D were completely negative. Repeated open application tests with amcinonide and triamcinolone acetonide cream on the ventral aspect of the upper arm were negative. Bronchial exposure to alternative sprays containing beclomethasone dipropionate (group D), fluticasone‐17‐ propionate (D) and dexamethasone‐21‐isonicotinate (C) was well tolerated. In conclusion, this case is instructive, because the symptoms which developed after a short period of corticosteroid inhalation suggested a type I allergy. Testing proved a severe type IV contact allergy restricted to budesonide (group B), without cross‐reactions to major corticosteroids of other groups.
Prediction of irritancy in the human skin irritancy model and occupational setting
Authors: Tupker R. A.
Published: December 2003

It is of great importance to find ways to lower the incidence of chronic irritant contact dermatitis. In this process, it is crucial to have insight in the factors that can predict irritancy. This review offers a survey of recent findings in the field of skin irritancy testing, discussed in the context of renowned, older work. Extrinsic and intrinsic factors that may determine the outcome of irritancy testing in the human skin model are considered. In recent decades, there has been increasing interest in factors influencing the development of occupational dermatitis by means of prospective cohort studies. This promising new area of investigation is discussed separately.
The association between ambient air conditions (temperature and absolute humidity), irritant sodium lauryl sulfate patch test reactions and patch test reactivity to standard allergens
Authors: Uter Wolfgang , Hegewald Janice , Pfahlberg Annette , Pirker Claudia , Frosch Peter J. , Gefeller Olaf
Published: December 2003

To support the decision as to whether erythematous patch test reactions to allergens are irritant or allergic, sodium lauryl sulfate (SLS, 0·5% in water) has been added to the standard patch tests since July 1996 in the Dortmund Department of Dermatology. Data on 1600 patients patch tested up until June 2001, as well as standardized data on ambient temperature and humidity obtained by the German Meteorological Service, were included in a logistic regression analysis taking age, sex and atopy as potential confounders into account. The pattern of association was heterogeneous: while doubtful reactions to nickel sulfate were significantly associated with dry/cold weather conditions, but not with SLS reactivity, the opposite was observed for lanolin alcohol, benzocaine and Myroxylon pereirae resin (balsam of Peru). Doubtful reactions to other allergens, namely formaldehyde, fragrance mix or p‐phenylenediamine, were associated with both factors. For several other allergens of the standard series, no distinct, significant pattern could be discerned. In conclusion, meteorological conditions and SLS reactivity independently contribute information on individual irritability at the time of patch testing, and both should be considered.
Efficacy of dexpanthenol in skin protection against irritation: a double‐blind, placebo‐controlled study
Authors: Biro Kathrin , ThaÇi Diamant , Ochsendorf Falk R. , Kaufmann Roland , Boehncke Wolf‐Henning
Published: December 2003

Dexpanthenol is popular in treating various dermatoses and in skin care, but few controlled clinical trials have been performed. We investigated the efficacy of dexpanthenol in skin protection against irritation in a randomized, prospective, double‐blind, placebo‐controlled study. 25 healthy volunteers (age 18–45 years) were treated for the inner aspect of both forearms with either Bepanthol® Handbalsam containing 5% dexpanthenol or placebo ×2 daily for 26 days. From day 15–22, sodium lauryl sulfate (SLS) 2% was applied to these areas ×2 daily. Documentation comprised sebumetry, corneometry, pH value and clinical appearance (photographs). 21 volunteers completed the study, 3 were excluded because of non‐compliance and 1 experienced a non‐study‐related, severe, adverse event. Only corneometry yielded a statistically significant difference, with decreased values following SLS challenge at the placebo sites (P < 0.05). Intraindividual comparisons showed superior results at the dexpanthenol‐treated sites in 11 cases and in only 1 case at the placebo site. 6 volunteers experienced an irritant contact dermatitis, with more severe symptoms at the placebo site in 5 cases. In conclusion, dexpanthenol exhibits protective effects against skin irritation. The initiation of a study to evaluate the efficacy of dexpanthenol in preventing irritant occupational contact dermatitis under real workplace conditions is validated.
The irritation potential and reservoir effect of mild soaps
Authors: Lodén Marie , Buraczewska Izabela , Edlund Fredrik
Published: December 2003

Identification and reduction of external noxious factors is one key point in the strategy for the treatment and reduction of contact dermatitis. A wide variety of soaps on the market are claimed to be suitable for the use on sensitive skin due to their mildness. The aim of the present study was to illustrate possible differences in the irritation potential of 8 products and to investigate whether surfactant residues may form an irritant reservoir on the skin. The study was double‐blind, randomized using healthy human volunteers. The inherent capacity of the products to induce irritation was determined using conventional patch test technique, whereas detection of potential surfactant residues on the skin was done using a methodology developed in the 1960s for detection of the corticosteroid reservoir in the stratum corneum. The method comprised the release of active substance from the stratum corneum reservoir by occlusion of the skin with an aluminium chamber, followed by evaluation of the biological response. In the present study, the soap‐treated area was rinsed with water and then occluded. Instrumental measurements of the transepidermal water loss and superficial skin blood flow served as indicators of the injurious effects of the products. The results showed large differences in irritation potential between the products, and some of them demonstrated considerable damaging effect. Moreover, the study proved the presence of barrier‐impairing residues on the skin after rinsing with water. Subclinical skin damage can make the skin vulnerable to further irritation and delay recovery of chronic irritant contact dermatitis.
Patch testing with components of water‐based metalworking fluids
Authors: Geier Johannes , Lessmann Holger , Frosch Peter J. , Pirker Claudia , Koch Patrick , Aschoff Roland , Richter Gerhard , Becker Detlef , Eckert Christian , Uter Wolfgang , Schnuch Axel , Fuchs Thomas
Published: December 2003

Water‐based metalworking fluids (MWFs) may cause both irritant and allergic contact dermatitis. Several well‐known MWF allergens are available for patch testing, but considering the wide variety of possible components used in MWF, our diagnostic arsenal covers only a small part of potential allergens. We therefore selected 13 frequently used MWF components that might be sensitizers and had not yet been tested routinely. In 5 centres, 233 dermatitis patients with present or past occupational exposure to MWF were patch tested with this and other panels. Only 7 patients showed positive reactions to the study panel. Allergic reactions to the emulsifier diglycolamine [syn. 2‐(2‐aminoethoxy) ethanol] were seen in 5 patients, and 1 patient each reacted positively to 2‐amino‐2‐ethyl‐1,3‐propanediol (AEPD) and methyldiethanolamine (MDEA). Clinical relevance of the reactions to diglycolamine was unequivocally proven by its presence in the MWF from the patients' workplace in 3 cases. Diglycolamine seems to be an important MWF allergen, independently from monoethanolamine and diethanolamine. A test concentration of 1% petrolatum (pet.) appears to be appropriate. The importance of AEPD and MDEA as MWF allergens still remains to be established. The lack of positive test reactions to the other MWF components tested may be due to their low‐sensitizing potential or too low a patch test concentration being used.