Biomedical subjects

L Palenciano

Publications and source records attributed to L Palenciano.

9 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed1999

Risk of asthma in the general Spanish population attributable to specific immunoresponse. Spanish Group of the European Community Respiratory Health Survey.

BACKGROUND: Individuals with asthma are more atopic than the general population, but few reports have quantified this association, i.e. the proportion of asthma in the community due to specific immunoresponse. We aimed to determine the population attributable risk of asthma in the community due to atopy, and the quantity and quality of specific immunoresponses to common aeroallergens involved. METHODS: We used data from a cross-sectional study in a random sample of the general Spanish population, 20-44 years old, from five areas. In all, 1816 participants were given a symptoms questionnaire, a methacholine challenge and were assessed for atopy. Bronchial responsiveness (BR) was defined as a > or =20% fall in forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV1) after methacholine. Asthma was defined as symptomatic bronchial responsiveness. Atopy was assessed by measuring serum specific IgE or skin tests for sensitivity to Alternaria, birch, cat, Cladosporium, Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus, olive, Parietaria, ragweed or timothy grass. RESULTS: Sensitivity to any of the individual allergens tested significantly increased the risk of being asthmatic, at least twofold compared to non-atopic individuals. The population attributable risk of atopy in explaining asthma is 41.97% (95% CI: 29.2-60.3) when adjusting for area of residence, age, sex, and smoking. In symptomatic individuals, atopy was an independent factor in producing an early measurable PD20 (methacholine dose producing 20% fall in FEV1), especially in those atopic to two or more aeroallergens, and irrespective of the particular aeroallergen. CONCLUSIONS: Specific immunoresponse is strongly associated with asthma, but positivity to single allergens (quality) and the number of positive immunoresponses (quantity) do not change the per se risk of asthma in atopic individuals.

Adult↗

PubMed1997

A comparison between laddermill and treadmill maximal oxygen consumption.

Maximal O2 consumption (VO2max) is an index of the capacity for work over an 8 h workshift. Running on a treadmill is the most common method of eliciting it, because it is an easy, natural exercise, and also, by engaging large muscle masses, larger values are obtained than by other exercises. It has been claimed, however, that climbing a laddermill elicits a still higher VO2max, probably because more muscle mass is apparently engaged (legs + arms) than on the treadmill (legs only). However, no data in support of this claim have been presented. To see if differences exist, we conducted progressive tests to exhaustion on 44 active coal miners, on a laddermill (slant angle 75 degrees, vertical separation of rungs 25 cm) and on a treadmill set at a 5% gradient. The subjects' mean (range) age was 37.4 (31-47) years, height 174.3 (164-187) cm, body mass 82.2 (64-103) kg. Mean (range) VO2max on the laddermill was 2.83 (2.31-3.64) l x min(-1) and 2.98 (2.03-4.22) l x min(-1) on the treadmill (P < 0.01, Student's paired t-test). Mean (range) of maximal heart rate f(cmax) (beats x min(-1)) on the laddermill and on the treadmill were 181.0 (161-194) and 181.3 (162-195), respectively (NS). Laddermill:treadmill VO2max was negatively related to both treadmill VO2max x kg body mass(-1) (r = -0.410, P < 0.01) and body mass (r = -0.409, P < 0.01). Laddermill:treadmill f(cmax) was negatively related to treadmill VO2max x kg body mass(-1) (r = -0.367, P < 0.02) but not to body mass (r = -0.166, P = 0.28). Our data would suggest that for fitter subjects (VO2max > 2.6 l x min or VO2max kg body mass(-1) > 30 ml x min(-1) x kg(-1)) and/or higher body masses (> 70 kg), exercise on the laddermill is not dynamic enough to elicit a VO2max as high as on the treadmill. For such subjects, treadmill VO2max would overestimate exercise capacity for jobs requiring a fair amount of climbing ladders or ladder-like structures.

Adult↗

PubMed1996

Cardiac frequency in miners recorded during four to five work shifts.

Cardiac frequency (fc) was recorded in 101 coal-face miners [mean age 32.7 (range 21-49) years, mean height 169.6 (range 150-185) cm, mean body mass 76.9 (range 54-106) kg, mean maximal cardiac frequency (fcmax) 180.2 (range 154-197) beats min-1, mean maximal oxygen uptake (VO2max) 2.93 (range 1.9-4.0) 1.min-1] with a small-size, nonintrusive fc counter, during the five (n = 76) or at least four (n = 25) work-shifts in a week. The femax and VO2max were determined during a progressive test to exhaustion on a treadmill. Overall (four to five work-shifts) mean work-time fc(fc) was 97.7 (range 74.9-122.4) beats.min-1, resting fc (fcrest) 59.1 (range 50-75) beats.min-1, work-time increase in fc (fc-fcrest) 38.5 (range 21.1-55.8) beats.min-1 and percentage of fe reserve used (fcreserve = fcmax-fcrest) 32.0 (range 18.5-50.9). Multiple regression analysis showed that fc and fc-fcrest, as dependent variables, correlated with predicted percentage of CO lung diffusion capacity, (DLCOSB%) (r = - 0.334 and r = -0.273, respectively) but not with age, fcmax, VO2max, VO2max kg-1 body mass, effort test delta oxygen uptake/delta fe or percentage of forced expiratory volume in 1 s as independent variables. The percentage of fcreserve used as dependent variable, correlated with DLCOSB (r = -0.265) and fcmax (r = -0.227) but not with any of the other variables listed. Individual differences in worktime fc are thus large and virtually unpredictable. Other physiological variables not taken in account here (i.e. sense of effort, fatigue perception) as well as psychological ones (work satisfaction, motivation) may have played a role in those differences. At peaks of effort, some subjects reached fc values within the range of femax.

Adult↗

PubMed1995

Cardiac frequency throughout a working shift in coal miners.

Despite the ever-increasing mechanization of industrial activities, coal mining still remains a physically demanding occupation as it is not always possible to extensively mechanize the extraction process. To estimate the physical effort necessary to sustain coal mining activities in a poorly-mechanized mine, cardiac frequency (fc) was measured throughout the working shift with a Sport-Tester PE3000 (Polar Electro OY, Finland) in a representative sample of 73 Asturian miners engaged in a full spectrum of underground work. The mean +/- SD of the overall fc values measured in miners working at the coal face (Group 1, 33 subjects, mean age 32.7 years, age range 21-48 years) was 106.5 +/- 18.2 beats.min-1. In other miners (Group 2, 40 subjects, mean age 34.6 years, age range 23-48 years) corresponding figures were 103.1 +/- 17.7 beats.min-1 (p < 0.05). Subjects' average working shift fc (beats.min-1) was not related to age, measured (treadmill) VO2 max nor VO2 max.kg body weight-1, while average working-shift fc (%fc max) was weakly related to age (r = 0.396, p < 0.05), VO2 max (r = -0.295, p < 0.05) and VO2 max.kg body weight-1 (r = -0.352, p < 0.05). Working-shift peak fc (beats.min-1) was negatively related to age (r = -0.334, p < 0.05). Our study has provided the distribution of the overall fc values likely to be found in subjects working in these poorly-mechanized mines. However, average working-shift fc differs considerably from subject to subject and is largely unpredictable.

Adult↗

PubMed1984