Spirometry or Body Plethysmography for the Assessment of Bronchial Hyperresponsiveness?

Methacholine testing is one of the standard tools for the diagnosis of mild asthma, but there is little information about optimal outcome measures. In this study a total of 395 college students were tested by the ATS dosimeter protocol for methacholine testing, with minor modification. Body plethysmography and spirometry were measured after each inhalation step.

Stroke-Associated Pneumonia in Thrombolyzed Patients: Incidence and Outcome.

Background: Stroke-associated pneumonia often negatively influences the prognosis of stroke patients. The aims of this study were to determine the frequency of pneumonia and to investigate the correlation between pneumonia and prognosis in stroke patients receiving intravenous thrombolysis with recombinant tissue plasminogen activator (IV thrombolysis).

Methods: Between 2008 and 2013, 538 consecutive stroke patients (mean age, 72 ± 13 years; 50.

Allergic asthma after flour inhalation in subjects without occupational exposure to flours: an experimental pilot study.

Objective: Cross-reactivity between grass pollen and grain flour allergens is well known, but their significance in apprentice bakers with primary sensitization to grass pollen is not known.

Methods: Twenty-five subjects with mild asthma (most of them with hay fever), but without prior occupational flour exposure, underwent standardized experimental inhalation challenges with placebo and wheat and rye flours in randomized order on three consecutive days. Sensitization to flours and environmental allergens was assessed by skin prick tests and specific IgE antibodies in sera.

The German experience 10 years after the latex allergy epidemic: need for further preventive measures in healthcare employees with latex allergy.

Objectives: Powdered latex gloves or latex gloves with high allergen content are forbidden in Germany since 1998. It was the aim of this study to test the hypothesis that nationwide preventive measures enable health care workers with latex allergy to work without health risks about 10 years afterwards.

Methods: Ninety-one health care workers who had been reported to the accident insurance between 1996 and 2004 for occupational latex allergy were examined in 2007.

Occupational immediate-type asthma and rhinitis due to rhodium salts.

Background: Whereas platinum salts are well known occupational allergens, rhodium salts have not been identified as inhalative sensitizing substances.

Methods: A 27-year-old atopic operator of an electroplating plant developed work-related shortness of breath and runny nose with sneezing after exposure to rhodium salts. Quantitative skin prick tests (SPT) and bronchial challenge tests with a dosimeter protocol were performed with quadrupling doses of the sodium chloride salts of rhodium (Na(3)RhCl(6)) and platinum (Na(2)PtCl(6)).

Comparison of wheat and rye flour solutions for skin prick testing: a multi-centre study (Stad 1).

Background: Skin prick testing (SPT) is the basic method for diagnosing IgE-mediated allergies. However, skin reactivity is related to the quality of allergen extracts, which are often poorly defined for occupational allergens.

Objective: To compare wheat and rye flour SPT solutions from different producers.

Consort hypersensitivity pneumonitis.

To date, there is little information in the literature that hypersensitivity pneumonitis due to birds may occur without direct contact to birds. A 62-yr-old pensioner developed mild flu-like symptoms, fatigue and polyuria several hours after each meeting with his new female partner, either in hotels or his apartment. After divorcing from her ex-husband, who was a canary fancier, the female had moved into a bungalow approximately 6 months earlier.

Heterogeneity of breast cancer associations with five susceptibility loci by clinical and pathological characteristics.

A three-stage genome-wide association study recently identified single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in five loci (fibroblast growth receptor 2 (FGFR2), trinucleotide repeat containing 9 (TNRC9), mitogen-activated protein kinase 3 K1 (MAP3K1), 8q24, and lymphocyte-specific protein 1 (LSP1)) associated with breast cancer risk. We investigated whether the associations between these SNPs and breast cancer risk varied by clinically important tumor characteristics in up to 23,039 invasive breast cancer cases and 26,273 controls from 20 studies. We also evaluated their influence on overall survival in 13,527 cases from 13 studies.

Occupational hypersensitivity pneumonitis due to molds in an onion and potato sorter.

A 42-year-old female non-smoking onion and potato sorter developed work-related shortness of breath, cough, fatigue and flu-like symptoms. The diagnosis of hypersensitivity pneumonitis was based on patchy infiltrates in both lungs on high resolution computed tomography and lymphocytosis of 71% in a bronchoalveolar lavage sample with a CD4/CD8 ratio of 0.4.

Occupational immunoglobulin E-mediated asthma due to Penicillium camemberti in a dry-sausage packer.

A 62-year-old female sausage packer reported progressive work-related asthma, rhinitis and contact urticaria after contact to dry sausages refined by moulds. Whereas skin prick tests with commercial mould extracts were negative, the patient showed weak skin sensitization to a cultivated mould sample from a dry sausage. Specific immunoglobulin E antibodies to various moulds were demonstrated by ImmunoCAP and antibodies to the cultivated mould sample were demonstrated by enzyme allergosorbent test.

High incidence of metastatic disease in primary high grade and large extremity soft tissue sarcomas treated without chemotherapy.

Background: The risk of metastasis and the survival in patients with primary extremity soft tissue sarcomas is worse when tumour size is large and the grade of malignancy is high. Such tumours may receive chemotherapy and/or radiation therapy (RTX) for optimising local control. Irradiation can either be applied preoperatively or after tumour resection.

The interobserver-validated relevance of intervertebral spacer materials in MRI artifacting.

Intervertebral spacers for anterior spine fusion are made of different materials, such as titanium, carbon or cobalt-chrome, which can affect the post-fusion MRI scans. Implant-related susceptibility artifacts can decrease the quality of MRI scans, thwarting proper evaluation. This cadaver study aimed to demonstrate the extent that implant-related MRI artifacting affects the post-fusion evaluation of intervertebral spacers.

Identification of an obeche (Triplochiton scleroxylon) wood allergen as a class I chitinase.

Background: Wood dust is known to cause allergic occupational asthma and obeche (Triplochiton scleroxylon) is a prominent exponent in this field. However, the knowledge about wood allergens is still limited. The aim of this study was to identify and characterize obeche wood allergens.

Use of a panfungal PCR assay for detection of fungal pathogens in a commercial blood culture system.

A panfungal PCR assay was used to evaluate the ability of the ESP blood culture system to detect fungemia. The results showed that the ESP system is reliable for the detection of fungi and showed the applicability of using a molecular-based assay as a potential rapid and reliable method for the identification of fungi.

Platinum concentrations in sera of catalyst production workers are not predictive of platinum salt allergy.

Platinum (Pt) salts are potent occupational allergens in precious metal refineries and catalyst productions. The threshold limit value of 2000 ng soluble Pt/m3 enforced in many countries has been questioned because there is still a high incidence of Pt salt allergy. The objective of the present case series is to define the predictive value of biological monitoring by relating Pt in the serum of catalyst production workers and control subjects to sensitization to Pt salts as assessed by skin prick testing.

Comparison of IgE antibody concentrations to pyromellitic dianhydride-modified laminin and human serum albumin in sera of exposed workers with respiratory complaints.

Background: Acid anhydrides are used in a variety of industrial branches because of their highly reactive anhydride groups. Adverse effects of anhydride exposure include toxic/irritative effects as well as IgE- and IgG-mediated respiratory disorders. It was the aim of this study to examine the usefulness of conjugates of pyromellitic dianhydride (PMDA) and laminin, a respiratory tract protein, for the in vitro diagnosis of sensitization to PMDA.

Health hazards due to the inhalation of amorphous silica.

Occupational exposure to crystalline silica dust is associated with an increased risk for pulmonary diseases such as silicosis, tuberculosis, chronic bronchitis, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and lung cancer. This review summarizes the current knowledge about the health effects of amorphous (non-crystalline) forms of silica. The major problem in the assessment of health effects of amorphous silica is its contamination with crystalline silica.

Equivalent sensation curves of simultaneous lateral and vertical sinusoidal whole-body vibration.

Background: To evaluate the effects of whole body vibration on discomfort, the sensitivity to different frequencies as well as to different vibration axes must be regarded. This experimental study investigates the significance of lateral relative to vertical motions in the sensation of dual axis sinusoidal vibrations in sitting posture. The results are discussed in the context of the evaluation procedure proposed in the international standard ISO 2631 (13).