Work-related allergy in medical doctors: atopy, exposure to domestic animals, eczema induced by common chemicals and membership of the surgical profession as potential risk factors

Purpose To investigate the risk factors associated with work-related allergy-like symptoms in medical doctors. Methods Self-administered questionnaire survey and CAP test were conducted among medical school students in the 4th grade of their 6-year medical course in 1993–1996 and 1999–2001. Follow-up questionnaires were sent in 2004 to the graduates. These questionnaires enquired into personal and family history of allergic diseases, lifestyle, history of allergy-like symptoms including work-relatedness and occupational history as medical doctors. Relationships between allergy-like symptoms and relevant factors were evaluated by multivariate logistic regression analysis. Results Of 261 respondents at the follow-up survey, 139 (53.3%) and 54 (20.7%) had a history of any allergy-like symptoms and any work-related allergy-like symptoms, respectively. Female gender and family history of allergic diseases were signiWcantly associated with any allergy-like symptoms. Personal history of allergic disease, exposure to domestic animals, eczema caused by rubber gloves, metallic accessories, or cosmetics during schooling days, and membership of the surgical profession were signiW- cant risk factors for work-related allergy-like symptoms. On the contrary, to work-related allergy-like symptoms, gender, age, and smoking status were not signiWcantly related, and consumption of prepared foods was inversely related. Conclusions Personal history of atopy and eczema induced by common goods and the history of keeping domestic animals may be predictors of work-related allergy-like symptoms in doctors. After graduation from medical school, physicians start with exposure to various allergens and irritants at work, which relate to work-related allergy-like symptoms, especially for surgeons

Accessing the strong interaction between Λ baryons and charged kaons with the femtoscopy technique at the LHC

The interaction between Λ baryons and kaons/antikaons is a crucial ingredient for the strangeness S=0 and S=-2 sector of the meson–baryon interaction at low energies. In particular, the Lambda-Kbar might help in understanding the origin of states such as the Csi(1620), whose nature and properties are still under debate. Experimental data on Lambda-K and Lambda-Kbar systems are scarce, leading to large uncertainties and tension between the available theoretical predictions constrained by such data. In this Letter we present the measurements of Λ–KK− and Λ–KK+ correlations obtained in the high-multiplicity triggered data sample in pp collisions at sqrt(s) = 13 TeV recorded by ALICE at the LHC. The correlation function for both pairs is modeled using the Lednický–Lyuboshits analytical formula and the corresponding scattering parameters are extracted. The Λ–KK+ correlations show the presence of several structures at relative momenta k* above 200 MeV/c, compatible with the Ω baryon, the , and resonances decaying into Λ–K− pairs. The low k* region in the Λ–KK+ also exhibits the presence of the state, expected to strongly couple to the measured pair. The presented data allow to access the ΛK+ and ΛK− strong interaction with an unprecedented precision and deliver the first experimental observation of the decaying into ΛK−

Oxidized dietary oils enhance immediate- and/or delayed-type allergic reactions in BALB/c mice

Background: The consumption of cooking oils may exacerbate some allergic diseases. In the present study, the effects of naturally oxidized olive oil on immediate- and/or delayed-type allergic reactions were investigated in BALB/c mice. Methods: Mouse models of 3 types of allergic reactions: contact hypersensitivity (CHS), active cutaneous anaphylaxis (ACA), and DNFB-induced hypersensitivity, were orally administered naturally oxidized olive oil that was obtained by keeping the oil at room temperature for more than 3 years. The effects of ultraviolet ray (UV)-irradiated olive oil and other dietary oils as well as their possible oxidation products on CHS were also investigated. Results: Naturally oxidized olive oil had a high peroxide value (POV) and exacerbated CHS, ACA, and DNFB-induced hypersensitivity in a POV-dependent manner. UV-irradiated olive oil, corn oil, sesame oil and triolein had high POVs, but almost the same acid value (AV) and thiobarbituric acid-reactive substance (TBARS) level as fresh oils. Fresh olive oil and the representative oxidation product with a high AV or TBARS level had no effect on CHS, whereas all UV-irradiated oils and naturally oxidized olive oil exacerbated it. Conclusions: Oxidized dietary oils that have high POVs exacerbated immediate- and/or delayed-type allergic reactions regardless of the different oil constituents or oxidation processes

An Unusual Case of Fulminant Type 1 Diabetes during the Second Trimester of Pregnancy

Fulminant type 1 diabetes is a new subtype of rapid-onset type 1 diabetes, with pancreatic exocrine dysfunction, that usually develops during the third trimester of pregnancy. We describe a patient with fulminant type 1 diabetes onset during her second trimester, resulting in premature delivery. The 34-year-old woman, without any known risk factors for diabetes mellitus, experienced a sudden stillbirth at 24-weeks gestation. Her blood glucose level was 950 mg/dL and she was positive for urine ketone bodies. The condition met all the diagnostic criteria for fulminant type 1 diabetes, and was diagnosed as such. Although this disease is rare, its progression is rapid, and its clinical course is severe and occasionally leads to death; therefore, a full knowledge of the disease is important to facilitate an accurate diagnosis

Naturally oxidized olive oil exacerbates contact hypersensitivity by promoting differentiation into effector T cells and increasing antigen-specific IFN-γ production

The roles of differentiation and cytokine production of helper T and killer T cells by antigen stimulation were investigated to clarify the mechanisms of CHS exacerbation by naturally oxidized olive oil. Mice were orally administered naturally oxidized olive oil once every 2 days for 1 week after sensitization. IL-18 expression in the ear auricle and AP-1 and caspase-1 activity in the splenocytes were measured. The splenic T cell subpopulation and IL-4 and IFN-γ production in each subpopulation were also analysed. IL-18 expression and AP-1 and caspase-1 activity increased in the oxidized olive oil-administered group. CD3+CD4+ and CD3+CD8+ cells in splenocytes of OXA-sensitized mice increased from oxidized olive oil administration, and IFN-γ, a Th1 cytokine produced by antigen-stimulated CD3+CD4+ cells, was increased. These results suggest that excessive consumption of oxidized oils exacerbates the allergic reaction by promoting antigen-specific T cell differentiation and increasing production of inflammatory cytokines