Our PDT experience in the treatment of non-melanoma skin cancer over the last 7 years.

Background: Topical photodynamic therapy (PDT) with 5-aminolevulinic acid (ALA) was first described by Kennedy et al. in 1990; currently, accumulated evidence shows that topical PDT is effective in the treatment of actinic keratoses, Bowen's disease and superficial basal cell carcinoma, being potentially advantageous where size, anatomical location or number of lesions limit the efficacy and/or the acceptability of conventional therapies. It involves the use of photosensitizing drugs and the administration of an appropriate light source to activate the sensitizing agent, which leads to the production of activated oxygen species for tissue destruction.

Alfa-one antitrypsin phenotypes and inhalatory pulmonary pathology.

One hundred and twenty nine workers in the cork industry, 69 rural workers, 66 carpet makers, 58 workers in a granite quarry and 51 workers in a rice husking factory were studied from an epidemiologic point of view. All were submitted to a standard questionnaire planned to detect respiratory disease due to inhalatory causes. They were submitted to a clinical examination, summary ventilatory function tests, a 70 mm microradiograph, and blood was taken to determine alfa-one antitrypsin and its phenotypes and, in the cork industry workers and rice husking workers, the level of IgA, IgG and IgM.

Prevalence of chronic bronchitis in the children of Lisbon.

Portugal is one of the European countries with the highest mortality from Chronic Bronchitis (CB). This constitutes a severe problem as CB is one of the main causes of absenteeism and incapacity. To determine the prevalence of this disease, an epidemiological study was planned.