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Biomedical subjects

A Fischbein

Publications and source records attributed to A Fischbein.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1992

Changes in PCB serum concentrations among capacitor manufacturing workers.

To assess the elimination of PCBs in humans, PCB concentrations in serum from 165 capacitor manufacturing workers were measured twice within a 46-month interval (March 1976-December 1979). Use of PCBs at the facility was entirely eliminated in 1977. PCB congeners with lower chlorination (LPCBs--mainly tri- and tetrachlorobiphenyls) had decreased in concentration, with six of the LPCB 7 peaks observed by packed column GC showing average reductions of 25-90%. Higher chlorinated PCBs did not decrease significantly as a whole, although three of the six constituent congener peaks showed some decline (15-25%). As expected, decreases in PCB congener concentrations were associated with chlorine substitution configurations known to be amenable to metabolism.

Adult↗
PubMed1992

Clinical findings among hard metal workers.

In 1940, the first report appeared describing a pulmonary disorder associated with occupational exposures in the cemented tungsten carbide industry. The disease, known as "hard metal disease," has subsequently been characterised in detail and comprises a wide range of clinical signs and symptoms. In this report, clinical findings in a group of 41 hard metal workers employed until recently are described. A high prevalence of respiratory symptoms was found. Thirteen workers (31%) had abnormal chest radiographs indicative of interstitial lung disease. Fifty per cent of these had been employed in hard metal manufacturing for less than 10 years. Abnormalities of pulmonary function were also frequent and included a restrictive pattern of impairment and decrease in diffusing capacity (27%). Associations were found between diffusing capacity, chest radiographic abnormalities and right ventricular ejection fraction at exercise indicating cardiopulmonary effects. The findings show the continuous need to control excessive occupational exposures to prevent hard metal disease, the history of which now enters its sixth decade.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1992

Extreme airborne asbestos concentrations in a public building.

Fibre concentrations of asbestos were measured in the air of a communal dining room in which the damaged ceiling had a sprayed on coating of insulation containing asbestos. The average concentration of crocidolite asbestos fibres was 4 f/cm3, 20 times the highest air concentration that appears to have been reported previously for a public building. It is concluded that although air concentrations of asbestos fibres in public buildings containing asbestos insulation materials are usually low, high concentrations can occur. This may have implications for the risk of exposed persons developing diseases associated with asbestos.

Air Pollution, Indoor↗
PubMed1992

Low level and bystander exposure to lead among factory workers.

A clinical field survey of 36 workers employed in the manufacturing of leaded products used in radiologic safety was conducted. Although the principal source of lead exposure was limited to an area where two individuals mixed lead oxide and vinyl liquid, increased lead absorption was found in other workers employed in adjacent areas. The mean lead concentration of the plant workers was 29.3 micrograms/dL (SD +/- 9.0), and four workers had blood lead levels of 40 micrograms/dL or higher. A statistically significant correlation was noted between blood lead and serum creatinine; linear regression analysis demonstrated that cigarette smoking was a significant factor in predicting the blood lead level. The exposure encountered in this plant may be typical of lead exposure in many similar industrial settings. It calls attention to the risk of excessive exposure among workers who are not working at the primary source of exposure, and should be considered in the design of medical surveillance programs for workers employed in small manufacturing plants.

Adult↗
PubMed1991

Desquamative interstitial pneumonia associated with chrysotile asbestos fibres.

The drywall construction trade has in the past been associated with exposure to airborne asbestos fibres. This paper reports a drywall construction worker with 32 years of dust exposure who developed dyspnoea and diminished diffusing capacity, and showed diffuse irregular opacities on chest radiography. He did not respond to treatment with corticosteroids. Open lung biopsy examination showed desquamative interstitial pneumonia. Only a single ferruginous body was seen on frozen section, but tissue examination by electron microscopy showed an extraordinary pulmonary burden of mineral dust with especially high concentrations of chrysotile asbestos fibres. This report emphasises the need to consider asbestos fibre as an agent in the aetiology of desquamative interstitial pneumonia. The coexistent slight interstitial fibrosis present in this case is also considered to have resulted from exposure to mineral dust, particularly ultramicroscopic asbestos fibres.

Asbestos↗
PubMed1991

Asbestosis, laryngeal carcinoma, and malignant peritoneal mesothelioma in an insulation worker.

Asbestos associated diseases consist of both benign and malignant conditions. A rare constellation of asbestosis, laryngeal carcinoma, and malignant peritoneal mesothelioma occurring in a patient with long term occupational exposure to airborne asbestos fibres is presented. The observation illustrates the powerful disease-causing potential of occupational exposure to asbestos. A brief discussion of multiple primary neoplasms associated with exposure to asbestos is also presented.

Aged↗
PubMed1991

Respiratory findings among ironworkers: results from a clinical survey in the New York metropolitan area and identification of health hazards from asbestos in place at work.

Diseases associated with asbestos are prevalent in the construction trades primarily as the result of the previously widespread use of insulation materials containing asbestos in the building industry. Workers in metal related trades, who are employed at construction sites, but who do not routinely use such materials in their work, may also be at risk for asbestos hazards. To assess such risk, a clinical survey was conducted on 869 ironworkers from the New York metropolitan area. A high prevalence of abnormalities on chest radiographs was found. Three hundred and twenty nine (38%) of the examined workers had pleural abnormalities on their chest radiographs consistent with asbestos induced effects. The prevalence of radiographic abnormalities indicating interstitial lung disease was low (7%) as was the prevalence of restrictive pulmonary function impairment (7%). Association was found between forced vital capacity (FVC) and pleural abnormalities on chest radiographs. Although ex-smokers appeared to have the highest prevalence of abnormalities, regression analyses showed that duration of employment in the ironworkers' trade was the most important factor associated with them.

Asbestos↗
PubMed1990

Persistent reactive airway dysfunction syndrome after exposure to toluene diisocyanate.

Two police officers developed asthma like illness after a single but prolonged exposure to toluene diisocyanate (TDI) by being in the immediate vicinity of a tank car that had overturned on a highway. One officer experienced upper and lower respiratory tract symptoms with chest tightness about 4.5 hours after initial exposure. Shortness of breath, cough, and wheezing were noted the following day. The other experienced symptoms immediately on exposure, developed shortness of breath 20 minutes later, and presented with wheezing four hours after that. Follow up examinations over seven years showed persistence of respiratory symptoms and continuation of airway hyperreactivity requiring treatment.

Accidents, Traffic↗
PubMed1988

Impairments in functional subsets of T-suppressor (CD8) lymphocytes, monocytes, and natural killer cells among asbestos-exposed workers.

Peripheral blood leukocytes from asbestos-exposed workers were analyzed by dual color flow cytometry using monoclonal antibodies that identify developmental (HLA-DR) and functional (Leu 8) subsets of T helper, suppressor lymphocytes, and monocytes. An increase in the number of T suppressor cells was closely associated with a decrease in T lymphocyte functions while numerical defects in activated monocytes (Leu M3+Ia+) and natural killer cells (Leu 7+) were correlated with a depressed Th/Ts ratio. Furthermore, among asbestos-exposed workers with depressed T cell functions we have demonstrated a significantly higher number of the effector Ts (Leu 2+ Leu 8-) subset which regulates both the Th/Ts lymphocyte system as well as B cells and NK cell activities. These findings identified changes in the T suppressor feedback regulatory loop as being responsible for the immunoregulatory imbalance among long-term asbestos workers. In double blind analyses of demographic and radiographic data these phenotypic changes were not correlated with age, smoking history, or duration of exposure but were associated with radiographic evidence of asbestos-associated effects. This correlation established a direct link between asbestos exposure and the subsequent development of immune dysfunction.

Adult↗
PubMed1988

Evaluation of right and left ventricular function in hard metal workers.

Ingested cobalt has previously been associated with the development of a congestive cardiomyopathy. Despite occasional reports of cardiomyopathy after industrial exposure to cobalt, this association remains controversial. In a study of 30 cemented tungsten carbide workers with a mean duration of exposure to cobalt of 9.9 +/- 5.3 years radionuclide ventriculography was performed to study right and left ventricular ejection fractions at rest and exercise. For the entire group, rest and exercise biventricular function was normal. There was, however, a weak but significant inverse correlation between duration of exposure and resting left ventricular function (r = -0.40, p less than 0.03). Workers with abnormal chest x ray findings (9/30) had relatively lower exercise right ventricular ejection fractions (45% +/- 6 v 52% +/- 7, p less than 0.02). An inverse relation was also found between rest and exercise right ventricular ejection fraction and severity of parenchymal abnormalities on x ray examination (r = -0.44, p less than 0.01 and r = -0.41, p less than 0.02). Diminished right ventricular reserve was probably due to fibrotic lung disease and early cor pulmonale. Although overt left ventricular dysfunction was not present, prolonged exposure to industrial cobalt may be a weak cardiomyopathic agent with unknown long term significance.

Adult↗
PubMed1987

An analysis of the validity of self reported occupational histories using a cohort of workers exposed to PCBs.

An investigation was conducted to examine the validity of self reported work histories obtained from a sample of 326 capacitor manufacturing workers who had participated in an epidemiological study relating health abnormalities to exposure to polychlorinated biphenyls. Based on objective personnel records obtained for 288 members of the sample group, validity scores ranged from 20% to 100% with most falling between 70% and 75%. This validity range corresponded to misclassification proportions ranging from 13% to 29%. Exposure misclassification tended to be random for men but non-random for women (overestimation of exposure). By means of multiple regression analysis, the diversity of the job categorical pattern was found to be a significant independent predictor of validity. The factors sex, duration, and time lapse were also significant validity predictors but only interactively with job diversity. There were also indications that interviewer skill could be an important factor. Knowledge of the magnitude of these factor effects could be critical in planning retrospective epidemiological studies.

Data Collection↗
PubMed1987

Immunotoxicology: environmental contamination by polybrominated biphenyls and immune dysfunction among residents of the State of Michigan.

In 1973, inadvertent contamination occurred in a special farm feed supplement for lactating cows. Polybrominated biphenyls (PBBs) were used in place of magnesium oxide resulting in serious harm to farm animals, including cattle, chickens, geese, ducks. Farm families, accustomed to eating their own products, were most heavily exposed. To study the impact of PBBs, 336 adult Michigan farm residents, 117 general consumers for comparison, 75 dairy farm residents in Wisconsin, who had not eaten PBB-contaminated food, were examined, as were 79 healthy subjects in New York City. Abnormalities in the Michigan groups included hypergammaglobulinemia, exaggerated hypersensitive response to streptococci, significant decrease in absolute numbers and percentage of T and B-lymphocytes, and increased number of lymphocytes with no detectable surface markers ("null cells"). Significant reduction of in vitro immune function was noted in 20-25% of the Michigan farm residents who had eaten food containing PBB. The decreased immune function detected among the PBB-exposed farm residents tended to affect families as a unit and was independent of exposed individuals' age or sex, pointing against the possibility of genetic predisposition.

Agricultural Workers' Diseases↗