Unexpected geographic variation in rates of hospitalization for patients who have fracture of the hip. Medicare enrollees in the United States.

With the use of data from hospitals for fiscal year 1985, we calculated the rates of hospitalization for fracture of the hip, by state of residence, for all enrollees in Medicare who were sixty-five years old or older; we adjusted for age and race. The rate of fracture of the hip was highest in the South and lowest in the Northeast, especially in women. The cause of this difference is not known.

Connective tissue disease in southeast Georgia. A community based study of immunogenetic markers and autoantibodies.

HLA antigens, C4 allotypes and T cell antigen receptor (TcR)beta DNA polymorphisms were determined in a community based study of connective tissue diseases (CTD). HLA-B8, DR3 and C4A null phenotypes occurred frequently in Caucasian patients with CTD, especially those with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), but were also more commonly found among healthy white controls of this southeast Georgia community. TcR beta gene polymorphisms also showed differential segregation patterns between patients with SLE and scleroderma.

Sex steroids and bone density in premenopausal and perimenopausal women.

Bone density begins to decline in women before menopause, and the degree of bone loss is variable. We performed a cross-sectional analysis on the entry data of a 5-yr prospective study of risk factors for osteoporosis to determine the correlation of bone density with serum sex steroid concentrations and body weight. We studied 292 healthy white women, aged 35-50 yr, who were menstruating regularly or had had menses in the past 12 months.

Connective tissue disease in southeastern Georgia: a case-control study of etiologic factors.

The authors conducted a population-based case-control study of connective tissue disease in a four-county area in southeastern Georgia. Interviews with 44 cases and 88 controls were conducted in September and October of 1986. The association with a family history of these disorders was reconfirmed, and a positive association with the use of hair dyes was found.

Premature thelarche in Puerto Rico. A search for environmental factors.

Pediatric endocrinologists in Puerto Rico reported a threefold increase in the number of patients with premature thelarche seen between 1978 and 1981. A matched-pairs case-control study was conducted to evaluate associations with potential environmental exposures to substances with estrogenic activity, as well as with familial factors. Analysis was performed on 120 pairs, the case subjects of which were selected from those diagnosed between 1978 and 1982.

Effects of exposure to salty drinking water in an Arizona community. Cardiovascular mortality, hypertension prevalence, and relationships between blood pressure and sodium intake.

A high level of sodium (440 mg/L) in the water supply of Gila Bend, Ariz, caused concern because of apparently elevated rates of hypertension in Gila Bend Papago Indians. We surveyed 342 Gila Bend Papago Indians and 375 non-Indians from July to September 1983. Participants 25 years of age and older were interviewed for health risk factors, water consumption, and dietary sodium and calcium intake and had height, weight, blood pressure, and urinary sodium and potassium levels measured.

Effects of polychlorinated biphenyls and lipemia on serum analytes.

Twelve serum analytes [triglycerides, cholesterol, total and conjugated bilirubin, high-density-lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C), alkaline phosphatase (AP), gammaglutamyl transferase (GGT), aspartate aminotransferase (AST), alanine aminotransferase (ALT), beta-glucuronidase (beta-glu), alanine aminopeptidase (AAP), and 5'-nucleotidase (5'nuc)] were measured to investigate their correlation with exposure to polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and 1,1,1-trichloro-2,2-bis(p-chlorophenyl)ethane (DDT). The relationship between serum lipids, lipophilic toxicants, and the analytes was also evaluated. The beta-glu, 5'nuc, triglycerides, cholesterol, and total bilirubin correlated positively and significantly with log concentrations of serum total PCBs and 1,1-dichloro-2,2-bis(p-chlorophenyl)ethylene (DDE), a metabolite of DDT.

Cancer incidence in the Netherlands Antilles: a survey covering the period 1968--1979.

In 1977 a retrospective study was started into the cancer incidence in the Netherlands Antilles, simultaneously with the onset of a cancer registry. This paper presents the results of this study and of the running registry, together covering a period of 12 years. In total, 1496 cancer cases were registered in males, and 1480 in females.

Microhematuria found by mass screening of apparently healthy males.

Preparation of urinary sediments was adapted for mass screening purposes. The procedure, characterized by most careful collection and transfer of the sediment and by a rigidly controlled work scheme, was tested in a limited population screening program with 446 healthy male participants. A capacity of 100 samples per 12 manhours was achieved.