Petogodišnja studija ispitivanja funkcije pluća i izloženost formaldehidu u drvnoj industriji

In an earlier cross-sectional study 47 formaldehyde glueing workers and 20 non-exposed control subjects were examined. In a follow-up study, five years later, 13 subjects had been transferred to other jobs whereas 21 were still occupationally exposed to formaldehyde. The results indicate a slow progress of lung function impairment in excess of the one due to normal ageing, at an average exposure to formaldehyde of 0.4 - 0.5 mg/m3 of air. The progress was significant for the FEV75-25 variables. These values returned to normal among non-smokers during a four-week vacation but remained unchanged among the smokers. A dose-effect relationship was found between exposure to formaldehyde and decrease in lung function among smokers.U prethodnoj studiji ispitivano je 47 osoba koje su bile izložene ljepilu s formaldehidom i 20 osoba koje su poslužile kao kontrola. Pet godina kasnije ponovno su ispitivani isti radnici, što je opisano u ovoj studiji. Od početne grupe 13 radnika bilo je premješteno na druge poslove, dok je 21 radnik još uvijek bio profesionalno izložen formaldehidu. Rezultati upućuju na polagano smanjenje plućnih funkcija koje je veće od uobičajenih posljedica starenja, pri ekspoziciji formaldehidu od 0,4 do 0,5 mg/ml3 zraka. Proces je statistički značajan za varijablu FEV75-25, a reverzibilan je u nepušača za vrijeme 4-tjednog godišnjeg odmora, za razliku od pušača u kojih je ireverzibilan. U pušača je nađena povezanost smanjenja plućnih funkcija ovisna o izloženosti formaldehidu

Longitudinalno ispitivanje rizika respiratornih oštećenja pri izloženosti terpenima u pilanama

Forty-eight subjects exposed to terpenes (mean exposure: 254 mg/m3) in two saw-mills in northern Sweden and 46 local controls were examined in a two-year follow-up study. Symptoms for the upper airways were significantly more common in the exposed group than among the controls. The FVC and FEV1 variables were reduced by an average of 0.32 and 0.47 L, respectively, compared to normal values. The nitrogen washout variables also differed between the exposed and controls with raised values in CV% and in the slope of the alveolar plateau (phase III), indicating an obstructive lung function impairment. A day of industrial exposure (Monday) caused no further decrease in any of the lung function variables. After improved environmental control the exposure to terpenes decreased to about 150-200 mg/m3. A new examination of the same subjects was performed two years later. In the follow-up study the mean FVC values were unchanged compared to normal values. However, the mean difference between the exposed and control workers was reduced by more than 50% in the variable FEV1.o and phase III. No further reduction was recorded after four weeks of no exposure (holiday).U dvogodišnjoj studiji ispitivano je 48 osoba izloženih terpenima u dvije pilane sjeverne Švedske (pri čemu je srednja ekspozicija bila 254 mg/m3), kao i 46 osoba iz istog poduzeća koje su poslužile kao kontrolna skupina. Simptomi gornjega respiratornog trakta bili su značajno učestaliji u izloženoj skupini u odnosu na kontrolu. FVK i FEV1 bili su smanjeni u prosjeku 0,32, odnosno 0,47 L usporedbi s normalnim vrijednostima. Vrijednosti dobivene testiranjem dušikom razliko¬vale su se u izloženih osoba u odnosu na kontrolnu skupinu u smislu povišenja KV%, kao i u na¬gibu alveolarnog platoa, upućuju na opstruktivno oštećenje pluća. Nakon ponovnog izlaganja ovim spojevima (ponedjeljkom), nije primijećene smanjivanje bilo koje od varijabli plućnih funkcija. Nakon poboljšanja uvjeta rada izloženost terpenima se smanjila te je ekspozicija iznosila 150-200 mg/m3. Isti ispitanici ponovno su pregledani nakon dvije godine te je nađeno da se FVK ne razlikuje od normalne vrijednosti. Usto je nađena da su vrijednosti FEV1 i nagib alveolarnog platoa u izloženih radnika smanjeni za više od 50% u usporedbi s kontrolnim radnicima. Nije primijećene daljnje smanjenje ovih vrijednosti nakon četiri tjedna prestanka izloženosti

Kontrola, tehnologija i mehanizam djelovanja izloženosti prašini i plinovima na plućnu funkciju

In an earlier investigation, a major temporary effect on the lung function was determined, with a spirometer, in stevedoors on a ro-ro-ship exposed to diesel exhausts from trucks during a work shift. In the present study all the trucks used aboard were equipped with especially designed micro-filters mounted on the exhaust pipes. When the filter was in use, no significant effect on the lung function was measured. The removal of the particulate fraction of the exhausts by filtering modified, or possibly eliminated, the effect observed earlier. In designing an indicator of the biological effects of diesel exhausts the particle fraction should be taken into consideration.U prijašnjem istraživanju nađen je značajan prolazni učinak ispušnih plinova kamiona na plućnu funkciju radnika za vrijeme smjene. U sadašnjem istraživanju svi kamioni imali su specijalne mikro filtre pričvršćene na ispušne cijevi. Pri upotrebi filtara nije primijećeno značajno djelovanje ispušnih plinova na plućnu funkciju. Uklanjanje određenog dijela plinova promijenilo je ili sasvim eliminiralo djelovanje koje je prije primijećeno. Stoga bi pri stvaranju indikatora za biološko djelovanje osobitu pažnju trebalo obratiti na tu frakciju ispušnih plinova dizel-goriva

Profesionalna izloženost, plućna funkcija i antitijela na Rhizopus u radnika u pilanama

Sixty-six wood trimmers and local control subjects were examined several times in a 27-month follow-up study. FVC and FEV1 were reduced by an average of 0.4 and 0.3 L, respectively, after a month of no exposure. Repeated measurements three months later, on a Monday before work, showed a further reduction in PVC and FEY1 by an average of 0.21 L in a saw-mill with a high exposure to moulds (5 x 10 4 colony-forming units/m3), but not in another saw-mill with a 10 times lower exposure. Further recordings 27 months later, on a Monday before work, displayed no further reduction in any spirometric variable. No change in lung function was noted after one day of work (Monday), but a further reduction in FVC of an average of 0.3 L was seen in non-smokers at the end of the week, with apparent resolution over the weekend. The impairment was more obvious at the saw-mill with the higher air concentrations of organic dust than at the other saw-mill. It is concluded that wood trimmers may develop a restrictive pulmonary dysfunction, which might be explained by an immunopathological reaction to heavy mould exposureU 27-mjesečnoj studiji višekratno je ispitivano 66 radnika zaposlenih u dvije pilane sjeverne Švedske i lokalnih kontrola. Smanjenje vrijednosti FVC i FEV1 nađeno je u radnika nakon mjesec dana odmora, i to za 0,4 odnosno 0,3 L. Ponovljeno mjerenje nakon tri mjeseca, a prije početka rada, pokazalo je daljnju redukciju ovih vrijednosti, i to u prosjeku za 0,21 L u radnika pilana s visokom izloženošću plijesnima (5 x 10 4 kolonija), što nije primijećeno u drugoj pilani s 10 puta manjom koncentracijom plijesni. Pri opetovanom ispitivanju nakon 27 mjeseci, u ponedjeljak, i to prije početka i nakon završetka radne smjene, nije došlo do daljnjeg smanjenja spirometrijskih varijabli. Međutim, daljnje smanjenje FVC-a (u prosjeku 0,3 L) primijećeno je krajem tjedna, i to u nepušača, s prividnim poboljšanjem tijekom vikenda. Smanjenje plućnih funkcija bilo je uočljivije u pilani s većom koncentracijom organskih prašina. Zaključuje se da se u radnika u pilanama mogu razviti restriktivne promjene plućne funkcije, koje se mogu objasniti kao imunopatološka reakcija na veliko zagađenje plijesnima

On eigenvalues of the Schr\"odinger operator with an even complex-valued polynomial potential

In this paper, we generalize several results of the article "Analytic continuation of eigenvalues of a quartic oscillator" of A. Eremenko and A. Gabrielov. We consider a family of eigenvalue problems for a Schr\"odinger equation with even polynomial potentials of arbitrary degree d with complex coefficients, and k<(d+2)/2 boundary conditions. We show that the spectral determinant in this case consists of two components, containing even and odd eigenvalues respectively. In the case with k=(d+2)/2 boundary conditions, we show that the corresponding parameter space consists of infinitely many connected components

An impairment-specific hip exoskeleton assistance for gait training in subjects with acquired brain injury: a feasibility study

This study was designed to investigate the feasibility and the potential effects on walking performance of a short gait training with a novel impairment-specific hip assistance (iHA) through a bilateral active pelvis orthosis (APO) in patients with acquired brain injury (ABI). Fourteen subjects capable of independent gait and exhibiting mild-to-moderate gait deficits, due to an ABI, were enrolled. Subjects presenting deficit in hip flexion and/or extension were included and divided into two groups based on the presence (group A, n = 6) or absence (group B, n = 8) of knee hyperextension during stance phase of walking. Two iHA-based profiles were developed for the groups. The protocol included two overground gait training sessions using APO, and two evaluation sessions, pre and post training. Primary outcomes were pre vs. post-training walking distance and steady-state speed in the 6-min walking test. Secondary outcomes were self-selected speed, joint kinematics and kinetics, gait symmetry and forward propulsion, assessed through 3D gait analysis. Following the training, study participants significantly increased the walked distance and average steady-state speed in the 6-min walking tests, both when walking with and without the APO. The increased walked distance surpassed the minimal clinically important difference for groups A and B, (respectively, 42 and 57&nbsp;m &gt; 34&nbsp;m). In group A, five out of six subjects had decreased knee hyperextension at the post-training session (on average the peak of the knee extension angle was reduced by 36%). Knee flexion during swing phase increased, by 16% and 31%, for A and B groups respectively. Two-day gait training with APO providing iHA was effective and safe in improving walking performance and knee kinematics in ABI survivors. These preliminary findings suggest that this strategy may be viable for subject-specific post-ABI gait rehabilitation

Air temperature changes in Toruń (central Poland) from 1871 to 2010

The article presents a detailed analysis of changes in air temperature in Toruń in the period 1871–2010 on the basis of homogenised monthly, seasonal and annual air temperature series which have been newly constructed (i.e. extended by the 50 years of 1871–1920). Over the 140-year study period, a sizeable and statistically significant increase of 0.1 °C per decade was found in the air temperature in Toruń. The greatest increases occurred for spring and winter, at 0.12 and 0.11 °C, respectively. A lesser warming, meanwhile, was recorded for autumn (0.10 °C/10 years), and particularly for summer (0.07 °C/10 years). The air temperature trends are statistically significant for all seasons. Air temperature differences between the monthly averages of three analysed subperiods (1871–1900, 1901–1950 and 1951–2010) and averages for the entire period under review rarely exceeded ± 0.5 °C. In all of these periods, the highest average air temperatures occurred in July and the lowest in January. The period of 1981–2010 had the highest frequency of occurrence of very and extremely warm seasons and years. Meanwhile, the highest frequency of very and extremely cool seasons and years was recorded in the 1940s and in the nineteenth century. In the period of 1871–2010, winters shortened markedly (by 7%) and summers lengthened by 3.8%. All of the presented aspects of air temperature in Toruń, which is representative of the climate of central Poland, are in close agreement with the findings of analogous studies of the same for other areas of Poland and Central Europe

An analysis of observed daily maximum wind gusts in the UK

The greatest attention to the UK wind climatology has focused upon mean windspeeds, despite a knowledge of gust speeds being essential to a variety of users. This paper goes some way to redressing this imbalance by analysing observed daily maximum gust speeds from a 43-station network over the period 1980–2005. Complementing these data are dynamically downscaled reanalysis data, generated using the PRECIS Regional Climate Modelling system, for the period 1959–2001. Inter-annual variations in both the observed and downscaled reanalysis gust speeds are presented, with a statistically significant (at the 95% confidence interval) 5% increase across the network in daily maximum gust speeds between 1959 and the early 1990s, followed by an apparent decrease. The benefit of incorporating dynamically downscaled reanalysis data is revealed by the fact that the decrease in gust speeds since 1993 may be placed in the context of a very slight increase displayed over the longer 1959–2001 period. Furthermore, the severity of individual windstorm events is considered, with high profile recent events placed into the context of the long term record. A daily cycle is identified from the station observations in the timing of the daily maximum gust speeds, with an afternoon peak occurring between 12:00–15:00, exhibiting spatial and intra-annual variations