Side-by-side comparison of an open-chamber (TM 300) and a closed-chamber (Vapometer™) transepidermal water loss meter.

Background: The measurement of transepidermal water loss (TEWL) is used to monitor changes in the stratum corneum's permeability to water vapor. This measurement is widely used in the cosmetics industry and in dermatology research. However, only limited work has been undertaken to assess the comparability of results from different TEWL meters over an extended range of measurements.

A case-control study of Parkinson's disease and tobacco use: gene-tobacco interactions.

A case-control study of genetic, environmental, and occupational risk factors for Parkinson's disease (PD) was carried out in five European countries (Italy, Malta, Romania, Scotland, and Sweden) to explore the possible contribution of interactions among host and environmental factors in sporadic PD. Whereas smoking habits confirmed its negative association with PD, a possible modulatory role of genetic polymorphisms was investigated to obtain further mechanistic insights. We recruited 767 cases of PD and 1989 age-matched and gender-matched controls.

Hearing symptoms and audiometry in professional divers and offshore workers.

Aims: The aims are to compare hearing loss between professional divers and offshore workers and to study whether hearing loss symptoms reflected physical disorder. A secondary objective was to study total threshold shift assessment as a method of detecting noise-induced hearing loss (NIHL).

Methods: Participants (151 divers and 120 offshore workers) completed a questionnaire for symptoms and screening audiometry.

Solvent exposure and cognitive ability at age 67: a follow-up study of the 1947 Scottish Mental Survey.

Objectives: Organic solvent exposure may be associated with cognitive impairment in later life although the evidence for this association is inconsistent. This study sought to examine the association between organic solvent exposure and cognitive function in later life.

Methods: A prospective longitudinal study set in Aberdeen, Scotland examined 336 men and women born in 1936 who participated in the 1947 Scottish Mental Survey.

Sharps injuries among medical students.

Background: Medical students may be at risk of sharps injuries for several reasons. These exposures can transmit a range of blood-borne pathogens including hepatitis B, hepatitis C and human immunodeficiency virus.

Aims: To evaluate medical students' knowledge regarding the prevention and management of sharps injuries and their experience of such exposures in the calendar year 2007.

Parkinson's disease and pesticide exposures.

Introduction: Idiopathic Parkinson's disease (PD) is a neurodegenerative disorder in which loss of dopaminergic neurons in the basal ganglia leads to tremor, bradykinesia, rigidity and postural instability.

Methods: Literature search using Medline with keywords 'Parkinson's disease' and 'pesticides', limited to English, was undertaken, supplemented by articles from the author's files.

Results: Many studies have found an association between pesticides and PD, but no one agent has been consistently identified.

A life-course approach to the aetiology of late-onset dementias.

Substantial progress has been made in the understanding of the neurobiology of dementias, but comprehensive causal models are not available. Genetic and environmental factors probably interact to determine vulnerability to the dementias. The life-course approach to age-related diseases, when systematically applied to the dementias, provides opportunities to identify the nature and timing of environmental contributions.