Biomedical subjects

J M Hartshorne

Publications and source records attributed to J M Hartshorne.

5 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed1982

Mortality risks in Australian men by occupational groups, 1968-1978: variations associated with differences in drinking and smoking habits.

Analysis of patterns of male mortality in Australia during 1968-1978 shows elevated death rates from liver cirrhosis, alcoholism and alcoholic psychosis in various rural, service, and "blue-collar" occupations. The risks of mortality from lung cancer and cancers of the upper alimentary tract and larynx--sites influenced by alcohol and tobacco consumption--are raised in the latter two groups. In contrast, the risks of mortality from cancer of the colon, thought to be influenced by dietary "affluence", are consistently higher for professional and "white-collar" groups. As reported in other populations, stomach cancer mortality risks are higher for service and blue-collar groups. The risks of mortality from coronary heart disease and cerebrovascular disease are also higher, albeit moderately, for these two groups. The consideration of personal behaviour as a reflection of socioeconomic and subcultural influences is a prerequisite to effective community health education.

Adult↗

PubMed1982

Alcohol and beer consumption in relation to cancers of bowel and lung: an extended correlation analysis.

Some extensions to simple international correlation analyses are examined with reference to beer consumption and bowel and lung cancers in 29 countries. Simple correlation of cross-sectional data for beer consumption and rectal cancer yields a coefficient of 0.77 in males and 0.75 in females. Lagged correlation analyses show a different temporal relationship between beer and colon cancer (little change over time) and rectal cancer (maximal correlation for contemporaneous, i.e. cross-sectional, data sets). Lagged correlation analysis of beer consumption and lung cancer shows a similar pattern to that for rectal cancer and beer, and markedly different from that for lung cancer and cigarettes, the former showing maximal correlation for contemporaneous data, the latter peaking 15 yr prior to date of mortality. Changes in beer consumption over time correlate with subsequent changes in rectal cancer, particularly amongst younger age groups. The sex-ratio of rectal cancer varies from around 1 in low beer consumption countries to about 1.75 in high consumption countries. The utility of these extensions to the usual simple correlation analyses is considered. The biologic plausibility of beer-bowel cancer relationships, and possible mechanisms, are discussed in the light of the findings.

Adult↗

PubMed1982

A prospective study of serial maternal serum zinc levels and pregnancy outcome.

A prospective study of 878 pregnant women in Adelaide, South Australia, examined the relationship of maternal serum zinc concentration to pregnancy outcome. Blood samples were obtained at weeks 18 and 32 of pregnancy, and from the umbilical cord. Additional detailed data were obtained, via standardised antenatal interview and review of clinical records, on antenatal care, personal, behavioural, and sociodemographic characteristics, and, subsequently, on delivery and neonatal assessment. Maternal mid-pregnancy zinc status was negatively correlated, although very weakly, with duration of gestation and with birthweight (including, in particular, the 18 recorded cases of intrauterine growth retardation). This finding accords with recent suggestions that, in non-experimental human studies in populations in which frank zinc deficiency is absent, maternal serum zinc level may be an outcome, rather than a determinant, of fetal growth later in pregnancy. Low mid-pregnancy zinc levels were associated with increased risk of intrapartum haemorrhage. In general, the greatest risk of having some complication or abnormality of delivery or neonatal functional status occurred in pregnant women who had both an initially below-average, and subsequently decreasing, serum zinc concentration. This corroborates other recent research. While it might be inferred that above-average fetal growth, by depressing maternal zinc status, could itself impair delivery and neonatal functioning, our data indicate that these effects operated independently.

Birth Weight↗

PubMed1981

Congenital anomalies in relation to the use of doxylamine/dicyclomine and other antenatal factors: an ongoing prospective study.

Recent publicity regarding possible teratogenic effects of the doxylamine/dicyclomine/pyridoxine combination (Debendox) has led to a degree of apprehension in women for whom the drug is prescribed, and in doctors who prescribe it. This study, based on an ongoing epidemiological surveillance programme, reports an analysis of the records of 1817 women for whom the drug was prescribed compared with 5771 non-users. The object of the study was to evaluate the outcome of pregnancy against exposure to the drug, taking into account the coexistent influences of other factors. Thorough statistical analysis disclosed no evidence of teratogenicity of the doxylamine/dicyclomine/pyridoxine overall, nor in relation to the skeletal or cardiovascular systems in particular. Two unexpected findings were an apparent moderate increase in genital tract abnormalities in users of this drug, and the possibility of a synergistic relationship between tobacco and this drug in early pregnancy, both aspects warranting further investigation.

Abnormalities, Drug-Induced↗

PubMed1980

Patterns of gastro-intestinal cancer in European migrants to Australia: the role of dietary change.

Cancers of the stomach, pancreas, colon and rectum are increasingly regarded as being diet-influenced. Migrants to Australia from England, Scotland, Ireland, Poland, Yugoslavia, Greece, and Italy have come from countries with varied dietary backgrounds and gastrointestinal cancer risks. Age-standardized cancer death rates in migrrants, by country of origin, sex, age, and duration of residence in Australia (less than or equal to 16 years and greater than 16 years), have been calculated for 1962-76, and compared with those of the Australian-born population. All seven migrant source countries, in 1970, had higher rates of stomach cancer than Australia, and the corresponding migrants groups, which initially reflected those higher rates, experienced an approximately 25% risk reduction with increased duration of residence. For cancer of the pancreas, migrants initially had rates well above their "native" rates; with longer stay, the risks generally converged upon that of the Australian-born population. The four "continental" (European) migrant groups, whose native risk of colon cancer is about half that of the Australian population, showed an increased risk with increasing duration of stay. The increase was greater in men than in women, perhaps reflecting their greater dietary acculturation. By contrast, Scottish migrants, with an initially high risk of cigrants showed even larger increases than colon cancer, while in British migrants there was a marked decline towards the "Australian-borne" risk. These various changes in cancer risk are discussed with reference to inter-country dietary differences.

Adolescent↗