Review of the epidemiologic literature on residential exposure to perchloroethylene.

Perchloroethylene is a solvent that is widely used for dry cleaning. There has been considerable interest in the toxicity of this chemical because of the potential for low-level exposure among a large portion of the US population. Although substantial epidemiologic literature exists on high-level occupational exposure to perchloroethylene, there are relatively few studies dealing with lower-level residential exposure.

Epidemiologic evidence for chloroprene carcinogenicity: review of study quality and its application to risk assessment.

This article evaluates the quality and weight of evidence associated with epidemiologic studies of cancer among occupational cohorts exposed to chloroprene. The focus is on liver, lung, and lymphohematopoietic cancers, which had been increased in early studies. Literature searches identified eight morbidity/mortality studies covering seven chloroprene-exposed cohorts from six countries.

Evaluating emerging issues in epidemiology.

Industry and government institutions need a credible approach for evaluating and responding to emerging public health issues. Representatives of industry, government, and academia met under the auspices of the International Life Sciences Institute's Health and Environmental Sciences Institute (HESI) to develop successful strategies for dealing with emerging issues based on historical case studies. The case studies chosen for evaluation were (1) tampon use and toxic shock syndrome; (2) hazardous waste and childhood cancer risk in Toms River, New Jersey; (3) fenfluramine and phentermine use and valvular heart disease; (4) silicone breast implants and cancer and auto-immune disease; and (5) progestational drugs and birth defects.

Practical implications of nonlinear effects in risk-assessment harmonization.

Cancer and noncancer health effects have traditionally been handled differently in quantitative risk assessment. A threshold (i.e.

Review of respiratory morbidity from occupational exposure to oil mists.

The American Conference of Governmental Industrial Hygienists (ACGIH) has recommended that the threshold limit value (TLV) for mineral oil mists be dramatically lowered, based on epidemiological evidence of respiratory health effects among machinists exposed to various metalworking fluid mists. A review of the literature regarding respiratory health effects from either metalworking or non-metalworking fluids suggest that machinists may have experienced slightly higher prevalence of common respiratory symptoms and mild and reversible cross-shift changes in some measures of pulmonary function. However, the inconsistency and potential for both random and systematic error in this body of literature argue against drawing definitive conclusions.

An analysis of the risk of B-lymphocyte malignancies in industrial cohorts.

Among numerous studies of occupational groups with varied chemical exposures (e.g., farmers, petroleum workers, and rubber workers), some have reported excess risk for non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL), multiple myeloma, and other cancers of the B-lymphocyte cell line.

Is the hygiene hypothesis an example of hormesis?

Unlabelled: The "hygiene hypothesis" has been suggested to explain the rising incidence of allergic disorders in developed countries. The postulated mechanism is that infectious and/or microbial agents stimulate the immune system toward Th1 (allergy fighting) rather than Th2 (allergy promoting) response. This paper reviews the evidence related to early life infectious/microbial exposures and subsequent atopic disorders and evaluates whether these data suggest a hormetic effect.