Biomedical subjects

M McCredie

Publications and source records attributed to M McCredie.

At least 73 records · Page 4Linked to original sources

PubMed1992

Risk factors for kidney cancer in New South Wales--I. Cigarette smoking.

In a population-based case-control study of kidney cancer in New South Wales, data from structured interviews with 489 cases of renal cell cancer (RCC), 147 cases of renal pelvic cancer (CaRP) diagnosed in 1989 and 1990, and 523 controls from the electoral rolls confirmed an increased risk associated with cigarette smoking in both types of cancer. The risk among current smokers was consistently higher than among ex-smokers, and was nearly twice as great for CaRP than for RCC. Additional information provided by this study includes reduced risks following cessation of smoking within 12 years for CaRP, but only after 25 years for RCC. Starting to smoke before, rather than after, the age of 18 years is linked independently with almost twice the risk for CaRP, but does not affect the risk for RCC. No independent trend was found with number of cigarettes smoked per day.

Adult↗

PubMed1991

Cancer incidence in New South Wales, Australia.

In 1972, cancer registration began in New South Wales (NSW), the most populous state in Australia. The operations of the Registry are described. By 1990, approximately 316,000 new cases of cancer had been notified from a population that had increased from 4.6 to 5.8 million. In 1981-1984, the most common sites in men were lung, prostate, colon, melanoma and bladder, and in women, breast, melanoma, colon, lung and unknown primary site. Cancers which, between 1973-1976 and 1981-1984, had increased in reported incidence by more than 25% were pharynx and kidney in both sexes, rectum, testis and melanoma in men, and lung and bladder in women; those decreasing by more than 10% were stomach in both sexes, oesophagus in men and cervix in women. Age-standardised incidence rates for melanoma (27.4 [m] and 23.8 [f] per 100,000 in 1987) and cancer of the renal pelvis in women (1.7 per 100,000 in 1989) are among the highest in the world.

Age Factors↗

PubMed1990

Cancer incidence in migrants to New South Wales.

Cancer incidence in migrants to New South Wales (NSW) from the British Isles, north-central, eastern and southern Europe, the Middle East and Asia has been compared with that in Australian-born residents using data from the NSW Central Cancer Registry for 1972-84. Indirectly standardized incidence ratios (SIRs) were low in migrants from all 6 regions for melanoma of skin and cancers of lip and, except in men from eastern Europe, colon. Oesophageal, rectal and prostatic cancers also tended to be relatively less common. Cancers which were more common than in the Australian-born were those of the stomach and, for men, bladder (except in the Asian-born). Migrants from different regions showed variations from the cancer pattern of the Australian-born population which, for the most part, were predictable from the known incidence of cancer in the countries within the region of origin. Exceptions were the high relative incidence of nasopharyngeal cancer in migrants from southern Europe and bladder cancer in men from all regions other than Asia.

Age Factors↗

PubMed1990

Cancer incidence in New Zealand born residents of New South Wales.

Cancer incidence in New Zealand born residents of New South Wales (NSW) has been compared with that in the Australian born population using data from the NSW Central Cancer Registry for the period 1972-84. Indirectly age-standardised incidence ratios (SIR) showed that New Zealand born women living in NSW had higher rates of cancer at all sites combined (SIR = 112) and a significant excess of colorectal cancer (SIR = 126). Although overall cancer rates were similar in men born in New Zealand to those in the Australian born men, the New Zealanders had a significantly higher risk of colorectal (SIR = 124) and testicular cancer (SIR = 227), cancers which are more common in New Zealand than in Australia. While the SIRs for lung cancer in men and melanoma of skin in both sexes were low, no cancer was significantly less common in New Zealand born residents of NSW than in the Australian born.

Colonic Neoplasms↗

PubMed1990

Cancer incidence in migrants to New South Wales from England, Wales, Scotland and Ireland.

Cancer incidence in migrants to New South Wales (NSW) from individual countries within the British Isles has been compared with that in the Australian-born population using data from the NSW Central Cancer Registry for the period 1972-84. Indirectly age-standardised incidence ratios (SIR) showed that, for cancer at all sites combined, Scottish migrants had a significantly higher, and English migrants a lower, incidence than the native-born Australians. Melanoma of skin was less common in migrants from all four countries while lung cancer was more common. In all except the Irish migrants, stomach cancer was more frequent than in the Australian-born. Raised SIRs for bladder cancer were found in men from all the countries and for breast cancer in all except the Irish women but only in the English migrants were these ratios significant. English migrants differed from those from Wales, Scotland and Ireland in that, compared with the Australian-born, they had significantly lower SIRs for cancer of the colon (both sexes), head and neck, larynx and prostate (men), gallbladder and kidney (women), and a higher SIR for ovarian cancer. Bone cancer was relatively more common in men born in Wales. 'Other genital' cancers (penis and scrotum; vulva and vagina) tended to be more frequent in migrants from each country than in the Australian-born.

England↗

PubMed1990

Cancer incidence in European migrants to New South Wales.

The incidence of cancer in migrants to New South Wales (NSW) from Italy, Greece, Yugoslavia, Germany, the Netherlands, Poland and USSR has been compared with that in the Australian-born population using data from the NSW Central Cancer Registry for 1972-84. The indirectly age-standardized incidence ratios (SIR) in all seven countries were low for melanoma of skin and high for gastric cancer. Cancers of the colon, oesophagus and lip also tended to have low SIRs. Migrants from Italy, Greece and Yugoslavia had significantly less cancer at all sites than the native-born Australians mainly due to low SIRs for cancers of colon, lung (except Yugoslavian-born men), prostate and, in men, 'head and neck' (excluding nasopharynx). Cancers of breast and testis were relatively less common in migrants from Italy and Yugoslavia. SIRs were high for cancers of bladder (in Italian-born men), liver (in Greek- and Yugoslavian-born men) and nasopharynx (in Greek-born men and Italian-born men and women). Amongst migrants from the four more northerly European countries, ovarian cancer was relatively more common in women from Germany and Poland as was bladder cancer in men, but not women, from Germany and the Netherlands. Cancers which had significantly increased SIRs in one migrant group only were lung (Dutch-born men), cervix uteri and body of uterus (German-born women), gallbladder and bile ducts (Polish-born women), thyroid (Italian-born women), connective and other soft tissue (Russian-born men) and brain (Greek-born men and women computed together). Lymphomas were relatively less common in men born in Yugoslavia.

Emigration and Immigration↗

PubMed1990

A case-control study of congenital heart block: association with maternal antibodies to Ro(SS-A) and La(SS-B).

A case control study of congenital complete heart block (CHB) was undertaken to determine the degree of association of this condition with maternal connective tissue disease and with maternal autoantibodies, in particular those to Ro(SS-A). Mothers of cases (n = 18) and controls (n = 72) completed a self-administered questionnaire and donated 10 ml of blood. The odds of giving birth to a child with CHB were increased by a factor of 22 for women with antibodies to Ro(SS-A) and/or La(SS-B) compared with women who did not have these antibodies. Thus the association between CHB and both anti-Ro(SS-A) and anti-La(SS-B) antibodies has been demonstrated in an Australian population and indicates that anti-La(SS-B), as well as anti-Ro(SS-A) antibodies may be a risk factor for the development of CHB.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1990

Comparative controlled trial of low-dose weekly methotrexate versus azathioprine in rheumatoid arthritis: 3-year prospective study.

Fifty-three patients with rheumatoid arthritis who required immunosuppressive therapy were commenced in a randomized trial comparing azathioprine to weekly oral pulse methotrexate. After an initial 24-week period, both groups had significantly improved from baseline measures of pain and functional capacity and there were no significant differences in clinical outcomes between the two groups. Laboratory variables of disease activity showed a significant improvement in haemoglobin and ESR in the methotrexate group. Subsequently, the patients were followed for up to 3 years. After one year, more than half of the patients in both groups had discontinued therapy due to inefficacy or adverse events. Adverse effects were more frequent in the patients treated with methotrexate, but withdrawal rates were similar in both groups. From these data, the probability of a patient continuing therapy with either agent for greater than 18 months is low.

Activities of Daily Living↗

PubMed1990

Geographical distribution of cancers of the kidney and urinary tract and analgesic nephropathy in Australia and New Zealand.

Age-standardised incidence rates for cancers of the renal parenchyma, renal pelvis and bladder and for end-stage renal failure due to analgesic nephropathy for the years 1982-83 were compared between the Australian states and New Zealand, and within New South Wales (NSW), to determine whether these rates paralleled the previous prevalence of consumption of phenacetin-containing analgesics. Whereas little variation was seen within Australasia in respect of the incidence of cancer of the renal parenchyma and bladder, both cancer of the renal pelvis and end-stage renal failure due to analgesic nephropathy had higher incidence rates amongst women in NSW and Queensland than in the other states or New Zealand. Within NSW, the average annual incidence rates during 1973-82 for renal pelvic cancer in the Hunter region of 1.3 (m) and 1.6 (f) per 100,000 were the highest in the state. These high incidence rates coincided with areas known to have had a high prevalence of consumption of compound analgesics containing phenacetin. In an international comparison with populations which had published incidence rates for each of the periods 1973-77 and 1978-82, the rate for cancer of the renal pelvis in women was highest in both time periods in NSW and had increased absolutely at a faster rate.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1990

Epidemiology of alimentary cancers in New South Wales, 1973-82.

Incidence and mortality data from New South Wales (NSW) for 1973-82 were examined using log-linear regression to determine the temporal trends of cancers of the alimentary tract. There were significant increases in incidence of cancers of the colon (1.7%/year), rectum (2.6%/year), and liver (4.0%/year) and decreases for cancers of the oesophagus (-2.2%/year) and stomach (-1.4%/year). By contrast, the mortality decreased significantly for cancers of the colon (-1.0%/year) and pancreas (-1.4%/year) as well as for cancers of the oesophagus (-3.4%/year) and stomach (-4.1%/year). Cancers of the colon, rectum and oesophagus were generally less frequent, and cancer of the stomach was more frequent, among migrants to NSW than among the native-born Australians in NSW. This pattern was most evident in migrants from Greece, Italy, Yugoslavia and England and was absent in migrants from Scotland and New Zealand. When compared with the state as a whole, rural NSW had significantly lower incidences of cancers of the oesophagus, stomach, colon and rectum.

Age Factors↗

PubMed1989

A survey of current prescribing practices of anti-inflammatory and urate-lowering drugs in gouty arthritis in New South Wales and Queensland.

We recently have conducted a cross-sectional survey to determine the prescribing practices of rheumatologists and a random sample of general practitioners in New South Wales and Queensland. While in general there was agreement as to the preferred management of gout, several important differences were noted between the two groups of doctors. In particular, general practitioners were more liberal than were rheumatologists in their use of allopurinol. However, they were less likely to cover the introduction of allopurinol with anti-inflammatory agents, to titrate the dose against the serum uric acid level or to adjust the dose according to the serum creatinine level. A small number of doctors continued to use urate-lowering drugs as a routine in the treatment of entirely asymptomatic hyperuricaemia. The data indicate a continuing need to disseminate information regarding the preferred management of hyperuricaemic states.

Allopurinol↗

PubMed1989

A controlled evaluation of arthritis education.

The benefits of patient education for those with chronic arthritis are well documented. Informed patients should practice self care more often, and may show reduced disability from their disease. An important question relates to maintenance of the knowledge and skills acquired in educational programmes. This prospective study evaluated an education programme for people with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and osteoarthritis (OA). The intervention group participated in a comprehensively planned six session behaviourally based programme. A questionnaire was given to 100 patients and 95 matched but non-random controls before the programme, 1 month later, and at 3 and 12 months. The intervention group demonstrated improvements in knowledge, self-reported health behaviour and disability scores at 12 months, compared to the controls. No differences were reported in symptoms, compliance with therapy, pain perception, and locus of control.

Arthritis, Rheumatoid↗

PubMed1989

Trends in invasive cancer of the cervix uteri in New South Wales, 1973-1982.

Data from the New South Wales (NSW) Central Cancer Registry comprising all new cases of, and deaths from, invasive cancer of the cervix uteri registered in persons aged 15 years and over for the 10-year period 1973 to 1982 were examined using log-linear regression to determine whether incidence and mortality had been changing in NSW. Allowing for the estimated fraction of women who had undergone hysterectomy, this cancer had decreased significantly in incidence (-1.3% per year) as well as mortality (-3.6%). There were no significant trends in relation to age at diagnosis, stage at diagnosis or histological type. Overall, younger age at diagnosis was associated with an earlier stage at presentation and there was no evidence for a trend towards more severe disease in young women during the 10-year period. No evidence was found for an increasing incidence of adenocarcinoma. By 1982 the age-standardized incidence rate was 10.4 per 100,000 (12.5 per 100,000 after adjustment for the hysterectomy fraction). Cancer of the cervix uteri was more common in Inner and Western Sydney and less common in the Northern Metropolitan region of Sydney and rural New South Wales.

Adenocarcinoma↗

PubMed1989

Percutaneous transluminal balloon dilatation of the mitral valve in pregnancy.

Pregnancy can cause life threatening complications in women with mitral stenosis, and there is a substantial risk of fetal death if valvotomy under cardiopulmonary bypass is required. A patient is described in whom pulmonary oedema developed after delivery of her first child by caesarean section 13 months previously. Subsequent cardiac catheterisation showed severe mitral stenosis (valve area 0.96 cm2, valve gradient 12 mm Hg, pulmonary artery pressure 30/16 mm Hg). Before valvotomy could be performed the patient again became pregnant and presented in pulmonary oedema at twenty two weeks' gestation. Medical treatment was unsuccessful and she underwent percutaneous transluminal balloon dilatation of the mitral valve. This increased the valve area to 1.78 cm2 and reduced the transmitral gradient to 6 mm Hg. The procedure was uncomplicated, and she remained symptom free on no medication. She delivered vaginally at 37 weeks' gestation. Percutaneous transluminal balloon dilatation of the mitral valve is a safe and effective alternative to mitral valvotomy in pregnancy.

Adult↗

PubMed1989

The effect of withdrawal of phenacetin-containing analgesics on the incidence of kidney and urothelial cancer and renal failure.

Incidence data for cancers of the kidney and urinary tract (1973-83) and for end stage renal failure (ESRF) due to analgesic nephropathy (1973-86) were examined by loglinear regression to determine the effect of the withdrawal of phenacetin from analgesic preparations in New South Wales and the Australian Capital Territory. Allowing for the altered age and sex structure of the population, the incidence rate between 1973-83 for ESRF due to analgesic nephropathy, in persons aged between 5 and 54 years, decreased by 4.2% per year while that for ESRF excluding patients with analgesic nephropathy or diabetes increased annually by 1.3%. The incidence rates in persons over 14 years of age for cancer of the renal parenchyma (3.4% per year), renal pelvis (5.5%) and bladder (2.1%) increased significantly more than that for cancer at all sites (1.2%). Thus the decrease in ESRF due to analgesic nephropathy had not, by 1983, been paralleled by a decrease in renal parenchymal or urothelial cancer.

Analgesics↗

PubMed1988

The changing incidence of cancer in adults in New South Wales.

Data from the New South Wales (NSW) Central Cancer Registry comprising all new cases of cancer registered in persons aged 15 years and over for the 10-year period 1973 to 1982 were examined using log-linear regression to determine whether the incidence of cancer had been changing in NSW. Allowing for the altered age and sex structure of the population over this period, the annual incidence rate for all sites combined increased significantly by 1.7% in men and 1.0% in women. Cancers which had increased at a rate significantly greater than that for all sites combined were those of unknown primary site (8.7% per year), lung (in women only, 5.6%), kidney (4.5%), bladder (2.7%) and rectum (2.6%) and lymphomas (2.6%). Other cancers which showed a significantly increased incidence rate per se were testis (3.5%), larynx (3.2%), prostate (2.1%), colon (1.7%), brain (1.6%), leukaemias (1.3%) and lung (in men only, 0.7%). Cancers which had decreased significantly in incidence were those of oesophagus (-2.2%), cervix uteri (-2.0%) and stomach (-1.4%). No significant change in incidence over the 10 years had occurred for cancers of the corpus uteri, breast, ovary or pancreas.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1988

Risk factors for cancer of the renal parenchyma.

A case-control study of cancer of the renal parenchyma (360 cases and 985 controls) investigated lifestyle and dietary risk factors by means of a questionnaire survey. A lifetime history concerning urological disease and consumption of analgesics, tobacco, and prescribed medicines, was obtained together with current dietary and demographic information. Estimates of relative risk were calculated using logistic regression. Statistically significant associations were found with phenacetin-containing analgesics, urological disease and increasing consumption of milk. No association was found with consumption of aspirin, paracetamol, prescribed medicines, tea, coffee or animal proteins other than milk, or with the type of fat or oil used for cooking or spreading. The association with tobacco just failed to reach significance.

Australia↗

PubMed1988

Assessment of a patient-completed questionnaire for keratoconjunctivitis sicca.

A patient-completed questionnaire has been shown to be equivalent to an observer-administered format in discriminating between subjects with and without keratoconjunctivitis sicca. As well as saving time it can screen patients for the presence of keratoconjunctivitis sicca without the need for more specialized and/or invasive techniques.

Humans↗