Risk of leukemia as a result of community exposure to gasoline vapors: a follow-up study.

Objectives: To assess the temporal and spatial relationship of risk for total leukemia and AML (acute myelogenous leukemia) among community residents of an area in northeastern (NE) Pennsylvania (PA) affected by the Tranguch Gasoline Spill which occurred in the early 1990s.

Methods: Standardized incidence ratios (SIR) were calculated for total leukemia and AML among 625 residents affected by the gasoline spill in relation to both PA and local county cancer incidence rates. The risk of total leukemia and AML among the gasoline exposed population was evaluated for the period prior to the spill, 1985-1989; during the time surrounding the spill, 1990-1994; and for a period subsequent to the spill, 1995-2001.

PM10 air pollution exposure during pregnancy and term low birth weight in Allegheny County, PA, 1994-2000.

Purpose: Low birth weight has been associated with increased risks of mortality and/or morbidity in childhood and adulthood. Epidemiological studies suggest that maternal exposure to air pollution, especially particulate matter during pregnancy, is associated with an increased risk of delivering a low birth weight infant. The aim of this study is to explore the association between exposure to particulate matter (PM10) during pregnancy and term low birth weight (LBW: birth weight <2,500 g and gestation age ≥ 37 weeks).

Case-crossover analysis of air pollution and cardiorespiratory hospitalizations: using routinely collected health and environmental data for tracking: science and data.

Background: From the early 1900s until its closure in February 1998, a Steel coke oven in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, was a key source of air pollution. A case-crossover study was performed to assess the associations between daily air pollution and cardiorespiratory (International Classification of Disease Ninth Revision [ICD-9]: 390-519) hospitalizations before and after plant closure and to evaluate how closure influenced these associations.

Methods: Air pollution data, climatic data, and cardiorespiratory hospitalizations among residents ages 65 years and older were obtained for the period of 1996 through 2000 for the study area.

Is there an independent effect of polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) and menopause on the prevalence of subclinical atherosclerosis in middle aged women?

Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), a common reproductive endocrine condition manifests at puberty, and is characterized by hyperandrogenism, chronic anovulation, and obesity. PCOS cases exhibit an adverse coronary heart disease (CHD) profile at an early age, including insulin resistance, dyslipidemia and increased central adiposity. It can be hypothesized that the menopausal transition, whether natural or surgical, may provide an additional "insult", resulting in greater cumulative risk to their vasculature.