Biomedical subjects

B Molik

Publications and source records attributed to B Molik.

5 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed1992

Occupational and environmental hazards associated with lung cancer.

In a hospital-based case-control study 194 lung cancer cases, 194 hospital controls, and 194 population controls were interviewed for their smoking, occupational, and residential history by trained interviewers, using a standardized questionnaire. In order to include many different environmental exposures, case ascertainment took place in seven different hospitals with catchment areas ranging from rural to highly industrialized. Lung cancer risk strongly increases with cumulative cigarette dose, reaching an odds ratio (OR) of 16.19 (95% confidence limits (CL): 5.10, 51.33) for male smokers of more than 40 pack-years and an OR of 19.99 (95% CL: 4.98, 80.24) for female smokers of more than 20 pack-years. For the quantification of occupational exposure to known carcinogens of the lung a novel approach was developed which accumulates exposure information obtained by supplemental questionnaires through an automatic procedure. The OR for the highest exposure group in males was 2.7 (95% CL: 1.23, 5.78). Significantly increased risks were observed in the metal industry, particularly in smelter and foundry workers (OR 4.8, 95% CL: 1.15, 20.16) and in turners (OR 2.2, 95% CL: 1.05, 4.75). In the construction industry the risks were particularly high in road construction workers (OR 3.7, 95% CL: 1.06, 13.20) and in unskilled construction workers (OR 2.7, 95% CL: 1.24, 5.76). The risks in these occupational groups increased with duration and with latency. Quantification of air pollution was done on a county basis by time period. An index based on emission data for sulphur dioxide was compared to a semiquantitative index, which included additional information on ambient air pollution. After adjustment for smoking and occupational exposures an OR of 1.01 (95% CL: 0.53, 1.91) for an emission index and of 1.16 (95% CL: 0.64, 2.13) for a semiquantitative index was obtained.

Adult↗

PubMed1990

[Results of the histology of bronchial carcinoma form an epidemiological study in North Rhine-Westphalia and northern Germany].

In a case-control study to examine the risk factors for bronchial carcinoma, 194 histologically confirmed cases of lung cancer and twice the number of controls (194 hospital controls, 194 population controls) were covered. In addition, the histological material obtained from 139 patients was assessed by a reference pathologist. In 107 cases (77%) the data coincided with the findings by the hospital pathologists. In women, young patients and persons with better general job qualifications adenocarcinomas and other bronchial carcinomas were seen more often and small-cell carcinomas as well as squamous cell carcinomas were rarer. Smoking did not entail any significant difference in respect of bronchial carcinoma risk. There was a significant risk increase among persons occupationally exposed to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, arsenic, chromium, nickel and radionuclides in respect of squamous cell and small-cell carcinomas but not of adenocarcinomas and other histological types of carcinoma.

Adenocarcinoma↗

PubMed1989

Health effects during a smog episode in West Germany in 1985.

In January 1985 a smog period occurred for 5 days in parts of West Germany, including the Rhur District. Mortality (24,000 death certificates), morbidity in hospitals (13,000 hospital admissions, 5400 outpatients, 1500 ambulance transports) and consultations in doctors' offices (1,250,000 contacts) were studied for a 6-week period including the smog episode and a time interval before and thereafter. The study region was the State of North Rhine-Westfalia (16 million inhabitants), but the analysis is restricted to the comparison of the polluted area and a control area (6 million inhabitants each). During the smog period, mortality and morbidity in hospitals increased in the polluted area, but there was no substantial increase in the control area. The increases were for the total number of deaths 8 vs. 2% (polluted area vs. control area), for hospital admissions 15 vs. 3%, for outpatients 12 vs. 5% and for deliveries by ambulance to hospitals 28% in the polluted area (not investigated in the control area). The effects were more pronounced for cardiovascular diseases than for respiratory diseases. The consultations in doctors' offices show a slight decrease (-2 vs. -4%). Regression analysis shows a moderate influence of temperature, but a strong influence of ambient air pollution. The maxima of the ambient concentrations are more important on the same day, whereas the influence of the daily averages is more pronounced after a delay of 2 days. The results are discussed considering other possible confounders such as indoor pollution and psychogenic influences of the alarm situation. In total, the study suggests moderate health effects due to increased air pollution during the smog episode.

Acid Rain↗

PubMed1985

Microscopic observations on some fibrous dust samples.

Fibers having a diverse range of physical and chemical properties may be emitted into the atmospheric air mostly as a result of human activities. Because the inhalation by man of certain particles may under some circumstances pose a risk to health, this group of particulate matter has to be measured and identified. Because there is little information about the biological (predominantly carcinogenic) potential as yet, measuring techniques are non uniform as well. In this study, the fiber content of human lungdust specimens has been determined electronmicroscopically for 4 different groups: so called normal lungs (as a control), mesothelioma cases, which may have been spontaneous, or initiated by occupational exposure, fibrosis cases (without any lung tumour) after occupational exposure in coal- and talc-mines. In comparison to the mentioned groups some samples from the atmospheric air in the Ruhr District were analyzed for fibers with the aim of obtaining more information about the shape, length and diameter of this particle group. The data indicated that the size distribution of fibrous particles may be highly different depending upon the previous exposure. Furthermore, elongated particles with irregular shapes may confuse the counting and sizing results (preferentially those of the diameters). Based on the present study, fibrous particles greater than 1 micron in length with a length-to-breadth ratio greater than 10: 1 seem to be of increased biological relevance, if mesothelial risk is the main focus of the investigation.

Air Pollution↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Pre- and postnatal lead-exposure in monkeys: effects on activity and learning set formation.

Rhesus monkeys were pre- and postnatally exposed to 0, 350, or 600 ppm lead acetate in the diet. Blood lead levels of the mothers were less than 1, 24.4, and 37.4 micrograms/100 g blood, respectively, while those of the offspring were substantially higher, at least in the early stages of development. At the age of 12-15 months the animals were tested for group activity levels in an unfamiliar environment. No substantial lead-related alterations of activity occurred neither for group activity nor for the activity of individual animals. There were, however significant dose-related impairments of pattern discrimination learning set formation, while in simple discrimination learning during the early training phases deficits were seen in the high lead group only. Emotional alterations of these animals may account for this result, whereas true cognitive deficits are likely to underly the impairment of learning set formation seen in the low lead group. It is concluded that the effects of lead in cognitive tasks are not secondary to changes of general activity level.

Animals↗