Chronic Noise Exposure with Normal Hearing is Related to Adverse Quality of Life and Burnout

Aims and scope: Occupational noise exposure is a well-known factor of hearing loss and other health related problems. Its contribution on burnout and health related quality of life, particularly when there is no hearing loss is less well studied. Herein we aim to study the effect of noise on the responses of normal hearing industrial workers on validated instruments. Methods: 384 industrial workers from three pharmaceutical companies with normal hearing were stratified into two groups: a noise-exposure group (n=195) and a non-exposure group (n=125). In addition to basic demographic characteristics, factors such as smoking, and BMI were examined alongside responses to the Oldenburg Burnout Inventory (OLBI) and SF-36 questionnaire. Findings: The noise-exposure group exhibited a higher prevalence of smokers (p<0.01), a slightly elevated median BMI (p=0.04) and reported more pronounced exhaustion as measured by the OLBI (p=0.03). Furthermore, they exhibited poorer responses in various dimensions of the SF-36 questionnaire, particularly in bodily pain (p<0.01), physical functioning (p=0.03), physical role functioning (p=0.02) and emotional role functioning (p<0.01) scales. Conclusion: Occupational noise exposure, even in the absence of hearing loss, is associated with a higher prevalence of burnout symptoms and an overall reduced health-related quality of life among industrial workers. These insights underscore the need for proactive measures to mitigate noise exposure's adverse impact on employee well-being and productivity in noisy work environments, independently of the findings in their audiometric results

Cell cyclins: triggering elements of cancer or not?

Cyclins are indispensable elements of the cell cycle and derangement of their function can lead to cancer formation. Recent studies have also revealed more mechanisms through which cyclins can express their oncogenic potential. This review focuses on the aberrant expression of G1/S cyclins and especially cyclin D and cyclin E; the pathways through which they lead to tumour formation and their involvement in different types of cancer. These elements indicate the mechanisms that could act as targets for cancer therapy

The effects of digital control on longitudinal autopilots for bank-to-turn and skid-turn missiles.

This work addresses the design and analysis of the discrete longitudinal autopilot for application to the bank-to-turn (BTT) missiles. In the development the classical design and analysis were reviewed using the continuous uncoupled pitch channel autopilot for circular airframe. Then,applying analog-to-digital conversion, the corresponding discrete autopilot was designed. The performance of both continuous and discrete open loop systems was analyzed according to the desired requirements. In the following section, utilizing modern control design techniques for the discrete pitch channel autopilot, the control law was designed, assuming availability of all the states and taking the desired poles to be at the same place as in the classical design. Therefore the discrete state-feedback autopilot was obtained and analyzed. The next step was the design of an estimator which estimates the entire state vector, given measurements of the portion of the state. The performance of the estimator was analyzed too. Finally coupling the discrete pitch and roll channel autopilots the overall performance of the discrete system was obtained and analyzed. The resulting design was also proved to be robust.http://archive.org/details/effectsofdigital00karaLieutenant, Hellenic NavyApproved for public release; distribution is unlimited

Gastrocolic fistulae; From Haller till nowadays

Gastrocolic Fistula is, in the majority of cases the pathological communication between stomach and transverse colon, because cases involved with the small intestine, pancreas and skin have been also documented, even though are rare. It occurs mostly in adults, but they can be present to infants, as well, as a result of congenital abnormalities or iatrogenic procedures (i.e. migration of PEG tube that placed before). In the Western Countries, the most common cause is the adenocarcinoma of the colon, while in Japan, adenocarcinoma of the stomach is the most frequent cause. It seldom appears, as a complication of a benign peptic ulcer, in Crohn’s disease and as a result of significant intake of steroids or NSAIDs. The typical symptoms of a gastrocolic fistula are abdominal pain, nausea-vomiting, diarrhea and weight loss. Radiology has been used for the detection of the fistulae all these years but the golden standard remained the barium enema. Barium meal and CT findings play a smaller role in the diagnosis. Although the management of gastrocolic fistulae has historically been surgical, medical treatment has recently been recommended as the first line when a malignancy can be excluded. (c) 2012 Surgical Associates Ltd. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved

IGF-I and IGFBP-3 before and after inpatient alcohol detoxification in alcohol-dependent subjects

Background: It is unclear whether alcohol detoxification has an effect on factors that are involved in growth, metabolic functions and cell proliferation. Alcohol abuse is associated with low IGF-I levels that tend to rise after alcohol withdrawal. There is a paucity of studies on the course of IGFBP-3 (the main binding protein for IGF-I) after alcohol detoxification. Material/Methods: We prospectively assessed IGF-I and IGFBP-3 changes at the time of admission and after 4 to 6 weeks of detoxification in an inpatient alcohol detoxification facility in 118 alcohol-dependent subjects given a regular hospital diet. No participants dropped out of the study. Results: Changes in IGF-I after alcohol detoxification showed a marked dimorphism in altered hepatic biochemistry upon admission, with a rise in those with normal liver enzymes upon admission (p=0.016, Kruskall-Wallis) and a drop in those with elevated liver enzymes upon admission (p=0.05); the latter was noted in subjects that had consumed alcohol close to the time of admission. Overall, however, IGF-I and IGFBP-3 were within normal limits for most subjects both upon admission and after alcohol detoxification; no significant differences were detected among the examined parameters in men vs. women, and there were no significant correlations of IGF-I, IGFBP-3 or the IGF-I/IGFBP-3 molar ratio with BMI or age. Conclusions: Regardless of hepatic enzymes’ elevation, alcohol detoxification had overall slight effects on IGF-I and IGFBP-3