Review of non-invasive biomarkers as a tool for exposure characterization in human health risk assessments.

Blood and urine are historically the most frequent matrices used for measuring chemical levels in human biomonitoring studies. As biomonitoring programs are refreshed, consideration of specific priority substances and specific population targets provide opportunities for inclusion of alternative non- or minimally invasive matrices. This review describes methods used in health risk assessment to characterize exposure and risk based upon biomarkers from noninvasive matrices other than urine or blood, including human milk, hair, fingernails, toenails, exhaled breath, deciduous teeth, sweat, semen, meconium, and feces.

Review of epidemiological and toxicological studies on health effects from ingestion of asbestos in drinking water.

Asbestos is a group of naturally occurring fibrous minerals that were commonly used in the construction of cement pipes for drinking water distribution systems. These pipes deteriorate and can release asbestos fibers into drinking water, raising concerns about potential risk to human health. The objective of this work was to synthesize human, animal, and evidence on potential health risks due to ingested asbestos in drinking water and evaluate the weight of evidence (WoE) of human health risk.

Validation of mobile phone use recall in the multinational MOBI-kids study.

Potential differential and non-differential recall error in mobile phone use (MPU) in the multinational MOBI-Kids case-control study were evaluated. We compared self-reported MPU with network operator billing record data up to 3 months, 1 year, and 2 years before the interview date from 702 subjects aged between 10 and 24 years in eight countries. Spearman rank correlations, Kappa coefficients and geometric mean ratios (GMRs) were used.

Diagnosis of manganism and manganese neurotoxicity: A workshop report.

With declining exposures to manganese (Mn) in occupational settings, there is a need for more sensitive exposure assessments and clinical diagnostic criteria for manganism and Mn neurotoxicity. To address this issue, a workshop was held on November 12-13, 2020, with international experts on Mn toxicity. The workshop discussions focused on the history of the diagnostic criteria for manganism, including those developed by the Institut de Recherche Robert-Sauvé en Santé et en Sécurité du Travail (IRSST) in Quebec in 2005 and criteria developed by the Chinese government in 2002 and updated in 2006; the utility of biomarkers of exposure; recent developments in magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) for assessing Mn accumulation in the brain and diagnosing manganism; and potential future applications of metabolomics.

Systematic review of epidemiological and toxicological evidence on health effects of fluoride in drinking water.

Introduction: Fluoride is a naturally occurring substance that is also added to drinking water, dental hygiene products, and food supplements for preventing dental caries. Concerns have been raised about several other potential health risks of fluoride.

Objective: To conduct a robust synthesis of evidence regarding human health risks due to exposure to fluoride in drinking water, and to develop a point of departure (POD) for setting a health-based value (HBV) for fluoride in drinking water.

Long-term cognitive impairment after probable delirium in long-term care residents: A population-based retrospective cohort study.

Background: The impact of delirium on cognition has not been well-studied in long-term care (LTC) residents. This study examined changes in cognition 1 year after a probable delirium episode among LTC residents, compared to LTC residents without probable delirium. We also evaluated whether the relationship between probable delirium and cognitive change differed according to a diagnosis of dementia.

Paediatric reference intervals and curves for haemoglobin and ferritin: protocol for a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Introduction: Reference intervals and reference curves provide clinicians with a point of reference when evaluating patients' laboratory test results. In practical applications, the 2.5th and 97.

Potentially Inappropriate Prescribing in Long-Term Care and its Relationship With Probable Delirium.

Objectives: This study examined potentially inappropriate prescribing (PIP) of medication and its association with probable delirium among long-term care (LTC) residents in Ontario, Canada.

Design: Population-based cross-sectional study using provincial health administrative data, including LTC assessment data via the Resident Assessment Instrument-Minimum Dataset version 2.0 (RAI-MDS 2.

Should we screen aging physicians for cognitive decline?

Objectives: To synthesize evidence relevant for informed decisions concerning cognitive testing of older physicians.

Methods: Relevant literature was systematically searched in Medline, EMBASE, PsycInfo, and ERIC, with key findings abstracted and synthesized.

Results: Cognitive abilities of physicians may decline in an age range where they are still practicing.

Concomitant use of statins and sodium-glucose co-transporter 2 inhibitors and the risk of myotoxicity reporting: A disproportionality analysis.

Aims: Recent case reports have suggested that sodium-glucose co-transporter 2 (SGLT2) inhibitors may interact with statins to increase their risk of myotoxicity. We assessed the risk of myotoxicity reporting associated with concomitant use of SGLT2 inhibitors and statins.

Methods: We queried the US Food and Drug Administration Adverse Event Reporting System (FAERS) from 2013 to 2021 for reports including SGLT2 inhibitors, statins or both.

Physical activity levels, pulmonary function, and MRI in children born extremely preterm: A comparison between children with and without bronchopulmonary dysplasia.

Introduction: Children with a history of bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD) may have lower physical activity levels, but evidence to date is mixed. This study compared physical activity levels between children born extremely preterm with and without history of BPD, and examined their associations with pulmonary magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and pulmonary function test (PFT) indices.

Methods: This multicentre cross-sectional study included children aged 7-9 years born extremely preterm, with and without BPD.

Biomarkers for occupational manganese exposure.

Long-term inhalation exposure to manganese (Mn) metal or its inorganic compounds can result in manganism or subclinical neurofunctional deficits. Studies have described affected workers in Mn dioxide mining, Mn-containing ore crushing and milling facilities, manufacturing of dry-cell batteries, Mn steel and alloy production plants, and in welders. The objective of this study was to critically review existing evidence on the reliability of potential biomarkers of Mn exposure, specifically the relationship between inhalation exposure to Mn particulates in different occupational settings and Mn concentrations in blood and other biological fluids and tissues, with a particular focus on whole blood as a potentially useful medium for measuring internal tissue dose.

Magnetic resonance imaging T1 indices of the brain as biomarkers of inhaled manganese exposure.

Excessive exposure to manganese (Mn) is linked to its accumulation in the brain and adverse neurological effects. Paramagnetic properties of Mn allow the use of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) techniques to identify it in biological tissues. A critical review was conducted to evaluate whether MRI techniques could be used as a diagnostic tool to detect brain Mn accumulation as a quantitative biomarker of inhaled exposure.

Aetiology of extracranial carotid free-floating thrombus in a prospective multicentre cohort.

Background: Carotid free-floating thrombi (FFT) in patients with acute transient ischaemic attack (TIA)/stroke have a high risk of early recurrent stroke. Management depends on aetiology, which can include local plaque rupture, dissection, coagulopathy, malignancy and cardioembolism. Our objectives were to classify the underlying aetiology of FFT and to estimate the proportion of patients with underlying stenosis requiring revascularisation.

Understanding the experiences of lung volume recruitment among boys with Duchenne muscular dystrophy: A multicenter qualitative study.

Background: Despite recommendations for regular lung volume recruitment (LVR) use in clinical practice guidelines for children with neuromuscular disease, adherence to LVR is poor. We aimed to describe the experience of LVR by boys with Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD), their families, and healthcare providers (HCPs), as well as to identify the barriers and facilitators to LVR use.

Methods: This multicenter, qualitative study evaluated boys with DMD (n = 11) who used twice-daily LVR as part of a randomized controlled trial, as well as their parents (n = 11), and HCPs involved in the clinical use of LVR (n = 9).

Biomarkers of environmental manganese exposure.

We conducted a critical review on biomarkers of environmental manganese (Mn) exposure to answer the following questions: 1) are there reliable biomarkers of internal Mn exposure (Mn in biological matrices) associated with external metrics of Mn exposure (Mn in environmental media)? and 2) are there accurate reference values (RVs) for Mn in biological matrices? Three bibliographic databases were searched for relevant references and identified references were screened by two independent reviewers. Of the 6342 unique references identified, 86 articles were retained for data abstraction. Our analysis of currently available evidence suggests that Mn levels in blood and urine are not useful biomarkers of Mn exposure in non-occupational settings.

A longitudinal analysis of early lung function trajectory in survivors of childhood Hodgkin lymphoma.

Background: Childhood Hodgkin lymphoma survivors suffer from long-term effects decades after treatment completion with a prevalence of pulmonary dysfunction of up to 65.2%.

Aims: This study explored the early trajectory of pulmonary function in pediatric cancer patients with Hodgkin lymphoma who received pulmonary toxic therapy.

Systemic quinolones and risk of retinal detachment III: a nested case-control study using a US electronic health records database.

Background: Quinolones are popular antibiotics that are known for their potency, broad coverage, and reasonable safety. Concerns have been raised about a possible association between quinolones and retinal detachment (RD).

Methods: We conducted a nested case-control study using electronic health records (EHR) from the Health Facts® Database.

Risk factors for respiratory adverse events after adenoidectomy and tonsillectomy in children with down syndrome: a retrospective cohort study.

Unlabelled: Obstructive sleep apnea syndrome is a major cause of morbidity in the Down syndrome population and is commonly treated with adenoidectomy and/or tonsillectomy (AT). However, these children are at increased risk for perioperative respiratory adverse events (PRAEs). The objective of this study was to examine risk factors for major PRAEs requiring intervention in children with Down syndrome undergoing AT and to describe their postoperative monitoring environment.

Routine lung volume recruitment in boys with Duchenne muscular dystrophy: a randomised clinical trial.

Background: Impaired cough results in airway secretion retention, atelectasis and pneumonia in individuals with Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD). Lung volume recruitment (LVR) stacks breaths to inflate the lungs to greater volumes than spontaneous effort. LVR is recommended in DMD clinical care guidelines but is not well studied.

Pulmonary Magnetic Resonance Imaging of Ex-Preterm Children with and without Bronchopulmonary Dysplasia.

Children born prematurely, particularly those with bronchopulmonary dysplasia, have persisting lung abnormalities requiring longitudinal monitoring. Pulmonary ultrashort echo time magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) measurements may provide sensitive markers of persisting lung abnormalities and have not been evaluated in school-aged children born prematurely. To compare pulmonary MRI and pulmonary function test measurements in preterm-born school-aged children with and without bronchopulmonary dysplasia.

Wireless phone use in childhood and adolescence and neuroepithelial brain tumours: Results from the international MOBI-Kids study.

In recent decades, the possibility that use of mobile communicating devices, particularly wireless (mobile and cordless) phones, may increase brain tumour risk, has been a concern, particularly given the considerable increase in their use by young people. MOBI-Kids, a 14-country (Australia, Austria, Canada, France, Germany, Greece, India, Israel, Italy, Japan, Korea, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Spain) case-control study, was conducted to evaluate whether wireless phone use (and particularly resulting exposure to radiofrequency (RF) and extremely low frequency (ELF) electromagnetic fields (EMF)) increases risk of brain tumours in young people. Between 2010 and 2015, the study recruited 899 people with brain tumours aged 10 to 24 years old and 1,910 controls (operated for appendicitis) matched to the cases on date of diagnosis, study region and age.