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Java project on periodontal diseases. The natural development of periodontitis: risk factors, risk predictors and risk determinants.

OBJECTIVE: To identify risk factors, risk predictors and risk determinants for onset and progression of periodontitis. MATERIAL AND METHODS: For this longitudinal, prospective study all subjects in the age range 15-25 years living in a village of approximately 2000 inhabitants at a tea estate on Western Java, Indonesia, were selected. Baseline examination was carried out in 1987 and follow-up examinations in 1994 and 2002. In 2002, 128 subjects could be retrieved from the original group of 255. Baseline examination included evaluation of plaque, bleeding on probing, calculus, pocket depth, attachment loss and presence of Actinobacillus actinomycetemcomitans, Porphyromonas gingivalis, Prevotella intermedia, spirochetes and motile microorganisms. RESULTS: The mean attachment loss increased from 0.33 mm in 1987 to 0.72 mm in 1994 and 1.97 mm in 2002. Analysis identified the amount of subgingival calculus and subgingival presence of A. actinomycetemcomitans as risk factors, and age as a risk determinant, for the onset of disease. Regarding disease progression, the number of sites with a probing depth > or = 5 mm and the number of sites with recession were identified as risk predictors and male gender as a risk determinant. CONCLUSION: Screening of these parameters early in life could be helpful in the prevention of onset and progression of periodontal diseases.

Adolescent↗

Perceived risk, real risk: social science and the art of probabilistic risk assessment.

Risk assessment is commonly seen as the domain of physical and biological sciences, with social scientists focusing instead on risk management and communication. This division is unnecessary, and it may lead to errors in risk assessments. Social science input is needed for more accurate calculations of risk consequences and probabilities and for identifying potential biases created by certain risk assessment procedures, as well as in analyzing and explaining public responses to risk. Findings, moreover, suggest that the dichotomy between "real" and "perceived" risk is less "real" than is often assumed, particularly in cases involving controversial technologies.

Accidents↗

A conceptual framework to assess the risks of human disease following exposure to pathogens. ILSI Risk Science Institute Pathogen Risk Assessment Working Group.

Currently, risk assessments of the potential human health effects associated with exposure to pathogens are utilizing the conceptual framework that was developed to assess risks associated with chemical exposures. However, the applicability of the chemical framework is problematic due to many issues that are unique to assessing risks associated with pathogens. These include, but are not limited to, an assessment of pathogen/host interactions, consideration of secondary spread, consideration of short- and long-term immunity, and an assessment of conditions that allow the microorganism to propagate. To address this concern, a working group was convened to develop a conceptual framework to assess the risks of human disease associated with exposure to pathogenic microorganisms. The framework that was developed consists of three phases: problem formulation, analysis (which includes characterization of exposure and human health effects), and risk characterization. The framework emphasizes the dynamic and iterative nature of the risk assessment process, and allows wide latitude for planning and conducting risk assessments in diverse situations, each based on the common principles discussed in the framework.

Disease↗

Cardiovascular risk factors, change in risk factors over 7 years, and the risk of clinical diabetes mellitus type 2. The Tromsø study.

In a large longitudinal study, we examined the relationships between cardiovascular risk factors (blood lipids, blood pressure, smoking, and physical activity), and change in these risk factors over a 7-year period, and the risk of clinical diabetes mellitus type 2. There were 73 verified new cases of clinical diabetes mellitus type 2 (diagnosed between 1987 and 1995) and 9,982 controls who consistently denied diabetes in three health surveys in 1979/1980, 1986/1987, and 1994/1995. Baseline body mass index, serum triglycerides, high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol, blood pressure, and physical activity in leisure, as well as change in these risk factors, were significant predictors for clinical diabetes mellitus type 2. Thus, both the level of risk factors at baseline and change in risk factor level are of importance for the risk of clinical diabetes mellitus type 2.

Adult↗

Risk-oriented postremission strategies in adult acute lymphoblastic leukemia: prospective confirmation of anthracycline activity in standard-risk class and role of hematopoietic stem cell transplants in high-risk groups.

INTRODUCTION: Although definite risk classes are well known, risk-adapted modulation of first-line therapy is seldom attempted in adult ALL. So, a prospective validation of the therapeutic efficacy of a protocol (or a component thereof) in specific risk groups is uncommon. MATERIALS AND METHODS: From 1996-1999 a risk-oriented program (08/96) was evaluated in 102/121 unselected patients (median age 35 years, blast count 0-450 x 10(9)/l, 100 B(lin) (lineage), 21 T(lin)) responsive to induction therapy. The standard risk (SR) class was B(lin) CD10+ Ph- with blasts < 10 x 10(9)/l (prior studies: disease-free survival (DFS) rate 52% at five years with dose-intensive anthracycline-containing programs). The SR protocol was therefore anthracycline-rich (early consolidation cycles with total idarubicin 96 mg/m2), and comprised long-term maintenance. High-risk (HR) patients were eligible to the following three options: allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) from related family donor; short sequence with high-dose cyclophosphamide-cytarabine-methotrexate followed by melphalan/total body irradiation with autologous HSCT; or T(lin) ALL chemotherapy regimen inclusive of high-dose cytarabine and methotrexate. RESULTS: Treatment realization and three-year DFS rates according to risk class, HR subset and postremission treatment intensity were the following. SR group (n = 28): realization rate 93%, DFS 68.5%. HR group (n = 74): realization rate 80%, DFS 39% (P = 0.052 vs SR category). In HR group, three-year DFS rates by disease subtype were the following. B(lin) Ph- (n = 35) 43%; Ph+ (n = 19) 13% at 2.7 years (P = 0.006 vs other HR subtypes); T(lin) (n = 18) 59.5%. And DFS rates by treatment intensity were: allograft (n = 21) 40%; autograft (n = 28) 27%; shift to SR protocol (n = 13) 52% (P = ns vs allograft/autograft); T(lin) program (n = 10) 57%. Matched analyses of treatment protocols and disease subtypes suggested a possible therapeutic role of the autograft regimen in B(lin) Ph- ALL with a blast count < 25 x 10(9)/l, and of T(lin) protocol for T(lin) ALL. Comparisons with retrospective control cohorts were confirmatory of anthracycline activity in SR subclass. CONCLUSION: The intended strategy was applicable to the majority of study patients, confirming the value of anthracyclines in SR class and, preliminarily, the usefulness a T(lin)-specific treatment. Apart from the case of Ph+ ALL, the indications for high-dose procedures with HSCT remains largely undetermined in this study.

Adolescent↗

Risk-adapted chemotherapy of germ cell tumors with carboplatin, etoposide and bleomycin for low-risk and cisplatin, etoposide and ifosfamide for high-risk patients. A single-center study.

The prognosis of germ cell tumors treated with chemotherapy depends on the presence of nonseminomatous tumor, clinical parameters based on the tumor volume and site, as well as on the level of the tumor markers AFP, betaHCG and LDH. We report here on the results of a risk-adapted approach to the chemotherapy of germ cell tumors. Patients with low-risk tumors, defined as seminomatous disease and/or nonseminomatous disease with a tumor mass <10 cm, less than 20 lung metastases, no liver, bone, or CNS metastases, and levels of AFP <1,000 IU/ml and betaHCG <10,000 IU/l, were to receive 4 cycles of carboplatin 400 mg/m(2) i.v. day 1, etoposide 120 mg/m(2) i.v. days 1-3 and bleomycin 30 IU i.v. days 1, 8 and 15 during the first 3 cycles (CEB(90)). Patients with high-risk disease were to receive 4 cycles of ifosfamide 1,500 mg/m(2) continuous infusion on days 1-4 together with mesna 1,200 mg/m(2) days 1-5, cisplatin 20 mg/m(2) i.v. days 1-5 and etoposide 100 mg/m(2) i.v. days 1-5 (VIP). Of the 60 patients treated with this risk-adapted approach, 51 had low-risk and 9 had high-risk disease. Forty-five of 51 patiens treated with CEB(90) achieved complete remission (CR), 4 achieved partial remission with marker negativity. Four patients with CR relapsed between 4 to 8 months after the start of chemotherapy. Of the 6 patients failing CEB(90), 3 were treated successfully with surgery or further chemotherapy. With a median follow-up of 52 months, the estimated cause-specific 3-year survival is 93% (95% confidence interval, CI, 80-98%). Seven of 9 high-risk patients treated with VIP achieved a CR and 1 patient relapsed. All 3 patients failing VIP had successful salvage therapy. With a medium follow-up of 63 months all patients remain alive and free of disease. Forty-six patients receiving CEB(90) were retrospectively classified to be in the good prognosis group according to the international germ cell consensus classification. Their estimated 3-year survival was 95% (CI 81-99%). We thus confirm that CEB(90) is a well-tolerated outpatient regimen with good results in good prognosis germ cell tumors. Bleomycin at a cumulative dose of 270 U might contribute substantially to the inferior effect of carboplatin as compared to cisplatin. However, in view of the results of randomized studies favoring cisplatin over carboplatin, it is not recommended to use this regimen outside a clinical trial.

Adolescent↗

[Current aspects in the evaluation of radiation risk: from the risk to organs to total injury risk (effective equivalent doses)].

For the estimation of the health risks of radiation in man by low radiation doses as well as to compare the man-made radiation exposure with the natural one, it is proved useful and necessary to estimate the effective dose-equivalent. It is not sufficient to take only into consideration the radiation exposure of bone marrow and gonads. Due to an external irradiation source as well as by incorporation of radioactive materials, various tissues and organs in the human body will simultaneously be exposed. This is best illustrated by the component of the "natural" radiation exposure with radon, attributable more or less to our living conditions. The incorporation of radon and its daughters in the lung with its cancer causing risk is not evaluated in the determination of the gonads and bone marrow dose. The effective dose-equivalent is being estimated for the evaluation of possible radiation risk by the carcinogenic and mutagenic effectiveness of radiation (stochastic radiation risk) with weighting factors. For the genetic risk solely 25% and for the somatic risk 75% are granted, whereas the risk factor "breast tissue" dominates.

Dose-Response Relationship, Radiation↗

Socioeconomic differences in risk of myocardial infarction 1971-1994 in Sweden: time trends, relative risks and population attributable risks.

BACKGROUND: The general trend in incidence of myocardial infarction (MI) in the Stockholm area changed from increasing to decreasing around 1980. The objective of this study is to examine time trends in incidence in major socioeconomic strata, relative risk between socioeconomic groups and population risk attributable to socioeconomic differences during this period. METHODS: All cases of MI from 1971 to 1986 were identified from hospital discharge and cause-of-death registers. Person-years for each year of follow-up were calculated from the population register in the Stockholm region 1971-1986. Census registers were used for information on socioeconomic status. Register information was individually linked through the Swedish personal identification number. Supplementary information for 1992-1994 was taken from the case-control study SHEEP (Stockholm Heart Epidemiology Program). RESULTS: The decline in MI risk among male high- and middle-level employees started in 1976 and in male manual workers in 1981. For women incidence increased from 1971 to 1986 among manual workers and decreased among high- and middle-level employees. The increase over time of the relative risk from low socioeconomic position continued into the 1990s. Despite the reduction of the category of manual workers, the population attributable risk from socioeconomic differences also increased over time. The process of social change influencing the size of the socioeconomic groups contributes to the change in time trends of MI morbidity. CONCLUSIONS: The increase over time of relative and population attributable risks of MI from low socioeconomic status add to the public health importance of social inequity.

Adult↗

Determining the main risk factors and high-risk groups of breast cancer using a predictive model for breast cancer risk assessment in South Korea.

This study was aimed at developing a predictive model for assessing the breast cancer risk of Korean women under the assumption of differences in the risk factors between Westerners and Koreans. The cohort comprised 384 breast cancer patients and 2 control groups: one comprising 166 hospitalized patients and the other comprising 104 nurses and teachers. Two initial models were produced by comparing cases and the 2 control groups, and the final equations were established by selecting highly significant variables of the initial models to test the accuracy of the models in terms of disease probability and predictability. Both the initial models and the final disease-probability models were confirmed to exhibit high degrees of accuracy and predictability. Major risk factors determined by comparing the patients with hospitalized controls were a family history, menstrual regularity, total menstrual duration, age at first full-term pregnancy, and duration of breastfeeding. Major risk factors determined by comparing patients with nurse/teacher controls were age, education level, menstrual regularity, drinking status, and smoking status. The predictive model developed here shows that risk factors for breast cancer differ between Korean and Western subjects in the aspect of breastfeeding behavior. However, identifying the relationship between genetic susceptibility and breast cancer will require further studies with larger samples. In a model with nurse/teacher controls, drinking and higher education were found to be protective variables, whereas smoking was a risk factor. Hence the predictive model in this group could not be generalized to the Korean population; instead, breast cancer incidence needs to be compared among nurses and teachers in a nurse-and-teacher cohort.

Adult↗

Risk assessment, risk perception and decision making about courses of action involving genetic risk: an overview of concepts and methods.

Developments in medical diagnostics and shifts in the ethics of human reproduction increasingly present prospective parents with deliberate choice problems involving possible child deficiencies. An adequate handling of such problems may be supported by explicit methodologies for judging risks and making decisions under uncertainty. The paper gives an overview of concepts, models and methods concerning risk analysis, risk perception and "good" decision making. Several different (stimulus) definitions of risk are presented, and it is shown that "perceived risk" (a response-defined concept) may be operationally measured at different levels of an organism's activity. Disputes on the meaning of probability statements are related to differences in the available information basis which may result from a combination of frequentistic/nonfrequentistic data about, and external/internal determination of possible consequences. After a listing of various notions of "acceptable risk", three different approaches towards making good decisions are discussed. The paper concludes with a summary and some suggestions for the improvement of genetic counseling procedures.

Decision Making↗

Quantifying risk and accuracy in cancer risk assessment: the process and its role in risk management problem-solving.

A better understanding of chemical-induced cancer has led to appreciation of similarities to problems addressed by risk management of radiation-induced toxicity. Techniques developed for cancer risk assessment of toxic substances can be generalized to toxic agents. A recent problem-solving approach for risk management of toxic substances developed for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, and the role of risk assessment and how uncertainty should be treated within the context of this approach, is discussed. Finally, two different methods, research into the assumptions underlying risk assessment and the modification of risk assessment/risk management documents, are used to illustrate how the technique can be applied.

Humans↗

Environmental risks of chemicals and genetically modified organisms: a comparison. Part II: Sustainability and precaution in risk assessment and risk management.

The principles of precaution and sustainability require more consideration in the assessment of environmental risks posed by chemicals and genetically modified organisms. Instead of applying risk reduction measures when there are serious indications for damage, full scientific certainty is often waited for before taking action. The precautionary principle particularly should be applied in those cases in which the extent and probability of damage are uncertain, e.g. in the case of persistent chemicals which are additionally bioaccumulative or highly mobile. Based on these principles, environmental action targets for risks associated with GMOs and chemicals can be developed. Risk management not only includes statutory measures but also instruments designed to influence behaviour indirectly are important to achieve the goals. Particularly for risks of GMOs which provoke fear, risk communication is important. Some rules to which attention should be paid in communication with the public are presented.

Animals↗

High risk plaque, high risk patient or high risk procedure?

SAPPHIRE, a randomised trial of endarterectomy versus angioplasty in 'high-risk' patients, concluded that angioplasty was 'not inferior' to surgery. This has subsequently been translated to mean that angioplasty was 'preferable' or 'advisable' in patients considered high-risk for surgery, with no further discrimination between symptomatic and asymptomatic individuals. Moreover, there have been suggestions that the accepted procedural risks may have to be increased in these patients. In fact, 71% of patients in SAPPHIRE were asymptomatic in whom there was an average 6% 30-day death/stroke rate. At this level of risk, neither surgery nor angioplasty could ever prevent long-term stroke. The concept of identifying high-risk patients is laudable, but they should be high risk for stroke (i.e. symptomatic). There is currently little systematic evidence to include asymptomatic patients within this definition.

Angioplasty↗

Risk analysis according to the Federal Institute for Risk Assessment international symposium "Towards a Risk Analysis of Antibiotic Resistance".

In the following, the conclusion reached by four expert working groups as regarding the aspect of risk assessment in the risk analysis process on antimicrobial resistance is outlined. Playing a central role is the procedure, which was endorsed by the FAO/WHO CODEX Alimentarius Commission in 1999, entailing hazard identification, hazard characterization, exposure assessment and risk characterization. Scientific observations in these four areas are subjected to evaluation. In essence, risk assessment decisions in this context are fundamental as they form the basis for risk management options, which in turn should reduce health risks posed by resistant microorganisms.

Agriculture↗

Absolute risk or relative risk? A study of intraspecies and interspecies extrapolation of chemical-induced cancer risk.

We have used the CBDS database of the National Toxicology Program to study the difference between absolute risk and relative risk models for interspecies and intersex predictions of cancer risk. For no combination (class) of tumor and site is the prediction good for all chemicals. The variation in predicted risk between chemicals exceeds the difference in risks resulting from application of these two models. On the whole, it appears that relative risk is a better model.

Animals↗

Risk characterization, risk communication, and risk management. The role of the occupational and environmental medicine physician.

Physicians who are board-certified in occupational and environmental medicine often have formal training and experience in toxicology, epidemiology, and industrial hygiene, as well as clinical medicine, human physiology, and pathology, and are well suited to be team members in the various phases of risk assessment, communication, and management. Those with several years of experience in the clinical, as well as administrative practice of occupational and environmental medicine, are engaged in the practical application of risk characterization, risk communication, and risk management on an almost daily basis. We propose that the occupational and environmental medicine physician is in a unique position to bridge the communication gap between those professionals who provide various components of the risk assessment process and those who manage those risks in society.

Communication↗

Prognostic risk factors that identify patients with clinical stage I nonseminomatous germ cell tumors at low risk and high risk for metastasis.

BACKGROUND: The purpose of this study was to develop a reliable model to identify clinical Stage I nonseminomatous germ cell tumors (NSGCTs) associated with low risk or high risk for occult retroperitoneal metastasis, so that the model could be used to customize the therapeutic approach for patients with these tumors. The model was to be based on pathohistologic parameters and immunohistochemical expression of proliferation markers, proteases, and adhesion molecules in the primary tumor. METHODS: One hundred forty-nine patients with clinical Stage I NSGCTs underwent retroperitoneal lymphadenectomy and were included in the study. Three to five paraffin embedded, formalin fixed tissue blocks were available from each patient and were analyzed for the following histopathologic features associated with pathologic Stage I or II disease: the presence or absence of vascular invasion (VI), the presence or absence of tunic invasion, and the percentage of each histologic type present in the primary tumor. Immunohistochemical expression of MIB-1, p53, bcl-2, cathepsin D, and E-cadherin was evaluated using a semiquantitative scoring system. Statistical analysis was performed with univariate and multivariate logistic regression models. RESULTS: The percentage of embryonal carcinoma (%EC, P < 0.001) and the presence of VI (P < 0.0001) and tunic invasion (P < 0.002) were the most significant independent risk factors associated with pathologic Stage II disease. A combination of %EC and VI allowed correct prediction of final pathologic stage for 88% of clinical Stage I patients. Cutoff values including both variables identified the correct pathologic stage for 131 of 149 patients (88%). Less than 45% EC and the absence of VI correctly identified pathologic Stage I disease in 91.5% of patients; more than 80% EC and the presence of VI correctly predicted pathologic Stage II in 88%. In univariate analysis, only p53 (P < 0.03) and E-cadherin (P < 0.001) expression were significantly different in the embryonal carcinoma component of pathologic Stage I and II NSGCT. To evaluate prospectively the clinical utility of the new derived cutoff points, the data were applied to 10 consecutive patients with clinical Stage I NSGCT who underwent retroperitoneal lymphadenectomy; pathologic Stage I and II were correctly predicted for 5 of 6 Stage I and 4 of 4 Stage II patients, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: %EC and the presence or absence of VI appear to be reliable prognosticators to identify patients at high risk and low risk for occult retroperitoneal disease. In cases of clinical Stage I NSGCT, p53, bcl-2, MIB-1, cathepsin D, and E-cadherin did not appear to be of prognostic significance. The authors recommend that all patients with clinical Stage I NSGCT have their primary orchiectomy specimens evaluated for %EC and the presence of VI to determine their risk for occult retroperitoneal metastasis.

Antigens, Nuclear↗

Reporting sexual risk behavior for HIV: a practical risk index and a method for improving risk indices.

OBJECTIVES: As a means of enhancing public health efforts to control sexual transmission of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), methods were developed to report on risk behavior in a manner that is comparable and widely interpretable. METHODS: An elementary sexual behavior risk index (the vaginal episode equivalent index) that is in accord with some of the essential knowledge about sexual transmission of HIV is described, and a multivariate ordinal risk (MOR) method that can be used to improve such risk indices is introduced. RESULTS: An example shows that these approaches are applicable to observational studies of seroconversion. CONCLUSIONS: The MOR represents a powerful new tool to develop valid comparable measures of sexual risk behavior and, thereby, to advance HIV prevention research.

Female↗