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Biomedical subjects

M Iversen

Publications and source records attributed to M Iversen.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1996

[Asthma symptoms and anti-asthma drugs in 4 Scandinavian countries].

A study of the occurrence of asthma in six areas in four Nordic countries showed 18-25 percent of the populations investigated to have had wheezing or whistling in the airways during the previous 12-month period, and 2-3 percent to have had asthma attacks. The use of anti-asthmatics was found to have differed from one to another of the areas included in the study, and the result suggest the difference to depend upon corresponding differences in the extent to which an active approach to treatment was adopted for the care of patients with asthmatic problems.

Adult↗
PubMed1996

Pig farmers have signs of bronchial inflammation and increased numbers of lymphocytes and neutrophils in BAL fluid.

The purpose of this study was to investigate whether pig farmers had inflammation of the bronchial mucosa and activation of bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) cells. Pig farmers are exposed to high dust levels and have a prevalence of work-related respiratory symptoms. Bronchoscopy and BAL were performed in 27 young large-scale pig farmers, who had never smoked. Fifty three lifetime nonsmoking healthy students participated as controls. All farmers and controls had normal lung function (forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV1) 109 and 105% predicted respectively. Estimation of macroscopic signs of inflammation in the bronchi (erythema, oedema, secretion and friability) showed that pig farmers had significantly increased signs of inflammation. The median score was 3 (range 0-6) compared to a median score of 0 (range 0-3) in controls. More pig farmers than controls (41 versus 25%) had a positive histamine challenge (provocative dose producing a 20% fall in FEV1 (PC20) < or = 32 mg.mL-1) but the difference was not significant. The cell concentration in BAL fluid was identical in the two groups. Pig farmers had a significantly increased percentage of lymphocytes (median 7, range 1-27 versus median 2, range 0-7) and neutrophils (median 2, range 0-30 versus median 1, range 0-4) compared to controls. Spontaneous migration (19.8 versus 5.5 microns) and chemotaxis (62.6 versus 11.2 microns) was significantly increased in pig farmers compared to controls. After stimulation with zymosan and phorbol myristrate acetate (PMA), the reactive oxygen radical generation of purified alveolar macrophages was also significantly increased in pig farmers. Lifetime nonsmoking pig farmers with normal lung function have macroscopic signs of bronchial inflammation and an increased number of neutrophils in bronchoalveolar lavage. Their alveolar macrophages showed biological signs of activation. The inflammation of pig farmers bronchi may be early signs of bronchitis.

Adult↗
PubMed1992

A comparative study of four different bronchial challenge tests.

The correlation between 4 commonly used tests for assessment of airway hyperresponsiveness was studied in 10 asthmatics by performing bronchial challenges with histamine, ultrasonically nebulised distilled water (UNDW), exercise, and a relevant allergen. All tests were performed within 4 weeks for each individual and at least 48 h apart. A significant correlation was found between histamine challenge and exercise challenge (r = -0.74). Other correlations were substantial (0.4-0.5) but did not reach statistical significance. This suggests that the challenges have different mechanisms or pathways leading to bronchoconstriction, and assessment of the pattern of individual patients' bronchial hyperresponsiveness may require application of a number of different bronchial challenge tests. For routine use histamine challenge seems the most appropriate.

Administration, Inhalation↗
PubMed1991

Measurement of PC20 histamine with the use of two different nebulizers and measurement of FEV1 and PEF.

Histamine challenge was performed in 19 patients using two nebulizers (PARI and Wright) and FEV1 and PEF were measured to determine PC20 histamine. FEV1 and PEF gave identical PC20 histamine values. The PARI nebulizer gave PC20 histamine values that were 2.5 doubling concentrations lower than the Wright nebulizer. The reproducibility of histamine challenge with the PARI nebulizer was studied in 15 patients and the results suggested that the challenge was reproducible within one doubling concentration of histamine.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1990

[Pulmonary sarcoidosis].

Sarcoidosis is a systemic granulomatous disorder of unknown genesis with an average annual incidence of 10/100,000 population in Denmark. The clinical picture and prognosis are dominated by the pulmonary changes in the majority of cases. The patho-anatomical picture consists of a T-lymphocyte-dominated interstitial inflammation with non-caseating epithelioid granulomas followed by fibrosis in varying degrees. The different types and courses of pulmonary disease are reviewed. Clinical examination, chest radiography, pulmonary function tests (especially the carbon dioxide diffusion capacity) and S-angiotensin-converting enzyme (S-ACE) are the most important measures of disease activity. The value of systemic corticosteroids is critically evaluated; most patients in this country can be observed without treatment because the spontaneous resolution rate is high. It is recommended that steroids should be administrated primarily in symptomatic and progressive parenchymal lung disease, or when critical or disabling extrathoracic sarcoidosis is present. If the pulmonary parenchymal infiltrates do not disappear within approximately 18 months, a course of prednisolone for at least one year should be considered to prevent disabling or even lethal pulmonary fibrosis.

Diagnosis, Differential↗
PubMed1990

Mite allergy and exposure to storage mites and house dust mites in farmers.

Sensitization to house dust mites, storage mites and other common inhalation allergens was studied in 144 farmers using SPT and RAST. The study population was selected from a random sample of 808 farmers and consisted of 47 persons who had declared themselves to suffer from asthma, 63 persons who had reported respiratory symptoms, and 34 healthy persons without respiratory symptoms. The most prevalent RAST was towards storage mites and was found in 17% of farmers who suffered from asthma and was estimated to occur in 5% of the random sample of farmers. A positive RAST to house dust mites was found in 17% of farmers who reported to suffer from asthma. Sensitization to pollens, animal dander and grain species was rare. A positive RAST to moulds was not found. There was a strong association between a positive RAST to house dust mites and a positive RAST to storage mites (odds ratio 21.0). A positive RAST to storage mites was significantly associated with living in a dwelling in the past which was recalled as damp (odds ratio 4.9). A high number of house dust mites was found in nearly all dwellings (median count 148 mites/0.1 g dust) and a high number of storage mites was found in some dwellings. This study suggests that in humid and temperate regions of Europe, allergy to storage mites in farmers is not caused exclusively by occupational exposure but damp housing conditions and indoor exposure to storage mites may also be important.

Agriculture↗
PubMed1990

Allergy to storage mites in asthmatic patients and its relation to damp housing conditions.

The relation between allergy to house dust mites and allergy to storage mites was studied in 326 patients with bronchial asthma. A positive RAST to house dust mites was found in 24.5% and to storage mites in 7.4%. There was a close association between a positive RAST to house dust mites and a positive RAST to storage mites, and 91.6% had a positive RAST to both. Only 0.9% with a negative RAST to house dust mites had a positive RAST to storage mites, whereas the frequency was 27.5% in those with a positive RAST to house dust mites. Present occupation with exposure to storage mites was found in 20.8% with a positive RAST to storage mites. A positive RAST to both house dust mites and storage mites was significantly associated with anamnestic indicators of damp housing conditions. The close association between allergy to house dust mites and allergy to storage mites in this study is probably caused by a common environmental factor, i.e. damp housing conditions.

Agricultural Workers' Diseases↗