Biomedical subjects

R G Olin

Publications and source records attributed to R G Olin.

3 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed1990

HIV status and changes in risk behaviour among intravenous drug users in Stockholm 1987-1988.

An HIV study initiated in January 1987 is being conducted at the Remand Prison in Stockholm, Sweden, in order to follow HIV seroprevalence and HIV risk behaviour among intravenous drug users (IVDUs) in Stockholm. Up to December 1988 1152 arrested and detained IVDUs were interviewed about risk behaviour and tested for HIV antibodies. Amphetamine, which is the main IVDUs drug used intravenously in Stockholm, was used by 958 of these, while heroin was used by 194. HIV seroprevalence was 12.6%: 5.9% among the amphetamine and 45.5% among the heroin users. The HIV incidence was calculated to be 0.9% in 1987 and 1.2% in 1988, higher for amphetamine than for heroin users. Some risk reduction was reported regarding needle sharing, but less so regarding sexual behaviour.

Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome↗

PubMed1987

Occupational factors associated with astrocytomas: a case-control study.

The most malignant form of all brain tumors is the supratentorial astrocytoma. Little is known about its etiology, but exogenous factors have been blamed. In this case-control study, 78 astrocytoma patients have been compared with 197 clinical and 92 population controls. An extensive questionnaire was used to gather information about occupational and residential environment exposure. Inquiries concerning groups of or individual chemicals elicited low rates of affirmative response, with negligible differences between cases and controls. However, the questions "working at an airfield" and "living near a petrochemical plant" indicated elevated risks in comparison with both control groups; so too did "living near a municipal sewage treatment plant." These results focus attention on exposure to organic compounds and should be considered together with similar findings in current research. No other occupation, branch of industry, or vicinity questions showed differences between cases and controls, with the exception of "living in the neighborhood of a paper mill or a saw mill," which gave moderately increased relative risks. A separate report gives the results from the nonoccupational part of the study.

Cerebellar Neoplasms↗

PubMed1986

The lymphocyte transformation test for diagnosis of drug-induced occupational allergy.

Twenty-five workers with clinically diagnosed or suspected occupational hypersensitivity caused by contact with bacampicillin, alprenolol, and/or quinidine were studied by the lymphocyte transformation test and by skin tests. Ten healthy exposed workers, 16 job applicants, and seven healthy nonexposed laboratory workers served as control subjects. Lymphocyte transformation was measured by 3H-thymidine uptake into DNA and by counting of lymphoblasts on cell smears. Lymphocytes from workers with contact eczema or with eczema in combination with conjunctivitis and rhinitis responded to offending drugs in vitro as demonstrated by an increased 3H-thymidine incorporation and by the presence of lymphoblasts in the cultures. In vitro proliferative responses were reproduced during a 4-year period. Drug-specific allergy was confirmed by positive patch test in most workers with eczema. In addition, bacampicillin-specific lymphocyte proliferation was also observed in workers with suspected bacampicillin hypersensitivity but with negative skin tests. They suffered mostly from eczema in combination with conjunctivitis and rhinitis or from conjunctivitis/rhinitis only. Lymphocytes from most control subjects did not respond in vitro to bacampicillin, alprenolol, or quinidine. Weak proliferative responses to bacampicillin were observed in two of the 16 job applicants. The exquisite specificity of drug-induced lymphocyte responses is demonstrated. Thus, lymphocytes from a quinidine-sensitive worker did not respond in vitro to the quinidine stereoisomer, quinine. Furthermore, lymphocytes from a bacampicillin-sensitive worker responded to some penicillins, such as pivampicillin and ampicillin, but not to others, such as benzylpenicillin or pivmecillinam. These data suggest the role of N-acylamido side chain in the sensitization of lymphocytes from this particular donor. In conclusion, lymphocyte transformation test can be used for the detection of offending agents in occupationally sensitized workers. Furthermore, lymphocytes from such individuals may serve as a model for study of specificity of cellular reactions underlying drug-induced hypersensitivity.

Adult↗