Family eczema-history in 2-year olds with eczema; a prospective, population-based study. The PACT-study, Norway

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>A maternal line of inheritance regarding eczema has been described in several studies, whereas others find associations to both a maternal as well as a paternal line of inheritance. When studying family history of eczema symptoms, cohort studies including siblings are rare. Time point for assessing family eczema-history could be of importance when studying the associations between family eczema-history and children with eczema, as parents with unaffected children may not recall mild symptoms in other siblings or their own disease history. We therefore aimed to study the associations between reported eczema in mother, father and siblings and reported eczema in index child where information on family history was collected at two different ages of index child.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Parents/children participating in The Prevention of Allergy among Children in Trondheim (PACT) study were given questionnaires on reported eczema symptoms in mother, father and siblings at 6 weeks and 1 year. When index child was 2 years of age, a detailed questionnaire on different health issues with emphasize on different allergy related disorders were filled in.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Both maternal and paternal reports on eczema were significantly associated with eczema in index child. Reporting family eczema-history at 1 year (N = 3087), "eczema sibling only" [adjusted odds ratio (aOR) = 3.13 (2.27-4.33)] as well as all other family-groups containing siblings with eczema were strongly associated with eczema 2 years. When family eczema-history was reported at 6 weeks (N = 2657), reporting of "eczema sibling only" was not associated to reported eczema at 2 years in index child [aOR = 1.31 (0.77-2.23)].</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Having sibling(s) with eczema strengthened the associations between maternal and paternal reports on eczema with eczema in index child only when exposure was reported at 1 year. These findings indicate that results from questionnaires-based studies of family eczema-history depend on whether or not index child has yet developed eczema.</p> <p>Trial registration</p> <p>ISRCTN: <a href="http://www.controlled-trials.com/ISRCTN28090297">ISRCTN28090297</a></p

Allergy from infancy to adolescence. A population-based 18-year follow-up cohort

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Anxious parents have many concerns about the future health of their atopic infants. Paediatricians and primary care practitioners need to seek knowledge on long-term outcomes in order to cope with the increasing caseload of suspected allergy and the concerns of parents. The aim of the study was to assess suspected and diagnosed allergy in infancy as predictors of allergy and asthma in adolescence.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Families expecting their first baby and making their first visit to a maternity health care clinic in 1986 were selected as the study population in a random sample. There were 1278 eligible study families. The data were provided of the children at the ages of 9 and 18 months and 3, 5, 12, 15 and 18 years by health care professionals, parents, and adolescents (themselves).</p> <p>Results</p> <p>At the age of 9 months, the prevalence of allergy suspicions was distinctly higher than that of allergy diagnoses. At the age of five years suspected allergy approaches were nil, and the prevalence of diagnosed allergy was about 9%. During the adolescence, the prevalence of self-reported allergy increases steadily up to the age of 18 years, and that of asthma remains at approximately 5%. Suspected allergy at the age of 9 or 18 months and at the 5 years of age does not predict allergy at adolescence. Compared with non-allergic children, children with definite allergy at the age of 5 were over 8 times more likely to have allergy and nearly 7 times more likely to have asthma in adolescence.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>An early ascertained diagnosis of allergy, but not suspicions of allergy, predicts prevailing allergy in adolescence. Efforts need to be focused on accurate diagnosis of early childhood allergies.</p

The Tumor-Immune Microenvironment and Response to Radiation Therapy

Chemotherapy and radiation therapy (RT) are standard therapeutic modalities for patients with cancer, including breast cancer. Historic studies examining tissue and cellular responses to RT have predominantly focused on damage caused to proliferating malignant cells leading to their death. However, there is increasing evidence that RT also leads to significant alterations in the tumor microenvironment, particularly with respect to effects on immune cells infiltrating tumors. This review focuses on tumor-associated immune cell responses following RT and discusses how immune responses may be modified to enhance durability and efficacy of RT

What everybody concerned with construction work should know about silent circular saws on construction sites

25.00; Translated from German (Baumasch. Bautech. 1984 v. 31(1) p. 12-20)Available from British Library Document Supply Centre- DSC:9022.381(HSE-Trans--13008)T / BLDSC - British Library Document Supply CentreSIGLEGBUnited Kingdo

Daten zur Anlagentechnik und zu den Standorten der thermischen Klaerschlammentsorgung in der Bundesrepublik Deutschland

Mit der Begrenzung des Gluehverlustes auf max. 5 % in der TA Siedlungsabfall ist eine Ablagerung von unbehandelten Klaerschlaemmen auf Deponien ab dem Jahr 1999 nur noch nach einer Vorbehandlung (z.B. mechanisch-biologisch) und ab 2005 nur noch nach einer weitergehenden Behandlung moeglich. Um diesen Anforderungen gerecht zu werden, sind neben der Entwicklung neuer Verfahren zur Klaerschlammentsorgung insbesondere die bestehenden Entsorgungsmoeglichkeiten, wie z.B. die thermische Behandlung in Mono-Klaerschlammverbrennungsanlagen oder die Mitverbrennung in Hausmuellverbrennungsanlagen bzw. Kohlekraftwerken sowie alternative thermische Behandlungsverfahren, intensiv zu nutzen. Vor dem Hintergrund dieser Neuorientierung ist es von Interesse, einen Ueberblick ueber den Anlagenbestand zur thermischen Klaerschlammentsorgung in Deutschland zu geben. (orig./ABI)With the annealing loss restricted to 5 % at most by the technical code on municipal waste, deposition of unprocessed sewage sludge at landfills will only be possible from 1999 if the product has undergone conditioning (for instance, mechanical-biological conditioning). From 2005 even, further treatment is required. To meet these demands, not only new sewage sludge disposal techniques need to be developed, but existing disposal pathways such as thermal processing at plants for the exclusive combustion of sewage sludge, or co-combustion at municipal waste processing plants or coal-fired power plants need to be widely made use of. Against this background it is interesting to give an overview of existing plants for thermal processing of sewage sludge in Germany. (orig./ABI)SIGLEAvailable from TIB Hannover: RN 8422(1998,72) / FIZ - Fachinformationszzentrum Karlsruhe / TIB - Technische InformationsbibliothekDEGerman