Biomedical subjects

P Comba

Publications and source records attributed to P Comba.

94 records · Page 6Linked to original sources

PubMedDate not supplied

[Safety assurance for occupational tumors in agriculture].

Cancer risk in farming is characterized by:-multiple exposure varying in time, space and between crops;-poor knowledge of agrochemical used by workers;-interset of both sellers and users mainly or acute toxicity of pesticides;-availibility of sufficient evidence of carcinogenicity in humans only for arsenical insecticides and for benzene used as solvent. The frequency of both claims for compensation and recognized cased is extremely low. Referral to exper agronomists operations in the area of interest can turn out to be of great value in assessing exposures. In case of exposure to carcinogenic agents defined as possible or probable, the following criteria may be adopted:-duration of exposure and latency time in agreement with findings from scientific literature;-biological plausibility of the association of interest;-evaluation of the interaction in the frame of multiple exposure, with special reference to the role of brief and/or low exposures. The above mentioned items are discussed by examining practical cases.

Agricultural Workers' Diseases↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Asbestos-related mortality in Italy: a geographical approach.

The present contribution describes two studies of asbestos-related cancer mortality in Italy: an analysis of the geographical distribution of mortality from pleural neoplasms and an investigation into the relationship between pleural and lung cancer mortality in an Italian region, Piedmont. Mortality from malignant pleural neoplasms (ICD-IX Revision 163.0-163.9) has been studied in Italy in the 20 regions and the over 8000 municipalities for the years 1988-92: restriction of analysis to municipalities with at least three observed deaths and statistically significant increases led to identification of areas where occupational and/or environmental exposure to asbestos can have occurred. The analysis of pleural and lung cancer mortality was carried out for the years 1980-87 in Piedmont using an empirical Bayes method for small-area disease mapping; the results showed that the proportion of lung cancer mortality attributable to asbestos exposure was 5.6 and 5.7 percent respectively in men and women. While analyses of routinely collected data are no substitute for ad hoc individual based studies, notwithstanding the limitations of geographical approaches to the study of asbestos-related mortality, investigations carried out at the level of small area populations appear to provide informative results, which might be of value in terms of public health.

Asbestos↗

PubMedDate not supplied

[Cause-specific mortality of asbestos-cement workers compensated for asbestosis in the city of Bari].

The cause-specific mortality of 233 asbestos cement workers employed by the Fibronit company in Bari and compensated for asbestosis was investigated. Cohort members were enrolled on 31.12.1979 and followed through 30.4.1997; follow-up was completed for 98.3% of study subjects, and causes of death were ascertained for 96.6% of deceased subjects. Observed mortality was contrasted to that expected according to cause-sex-age- and calendar time-specific rates of the population resident in the Apulia Region. All causes observed mortality exceeded expected value (SMR: 117, 87 observed), due to a significant' increase in pneumoconiosis (SMR: 11238, 14 observed) and malignant neoplasms (SMR: 163, 38 observed)). A significant decrease of circulatory diseases was found (SMR: 64, 18 observed). Among cancer deaths, the following sites showed a significant excess: lung (SMR: 206, 17 observed), pleura (SMR: 2551, 4 observed), mediastinum (SMR: 2367, 2 observed) and peritoneum (SMR: 2877, 2 observed). The excess mortality due to asbestosis, respiratory cancer and peritoned neoplasms can be causally attributed to occupational asbestos exposure.

Asbestos↗

PubMedDate not supplied

[Synthesis of the epidemiological evidence concerning childhood leukemia in relation to exposure to 50 Hz. electric and magnetic fields].

A review of epidemiologic evidence concerning the association between childhood leukaemia and exposure to 50 Hz electric and magnetic fields is presented, with special reference to fourteen studies published between 1979 and 1997 that utilised different systems of exposure assessment. While spot measurements of indoor magnetic fields were not associated with childhood leukaemia, combined relative risks from studies using 24 hour measurements range from 1.3 to 1.6 with lower confidence limits > or = 1.0. Thus, epidemiologic studies support an association between exposure to 50 Hz magnetic fields and childhood leukaemia. However, the causal nature of the association does not appear conclusively demonstrated because of limitations in study design and lack of a plausible biologic mechanism. In this framework, it seems justified to recommend the adoption of preventive measures aimed at reducing exposure to magnetic fields in dwellings, particularly in those featuring relatively high exposure levels.

Age Factors↗