[Osteosynthesis in lateral fractures of the neck of the femur].
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Aged↗
Biomedical subjects
G Assennato
Publications and source records attributed to G Assennato.
[Osteosynthesis using A.O. screws in medial fractures of the femoral neck].
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Bone Screws↗
[Follow-up of patients with chloracne in the Seveso area].
Three follow-up surveys from 1976 to 1985 were carried out on 193 subjects who developed chloracne following the Seveso accident (1976). A comparison group, age and sex matched, was selected randomly from the municipal list of Varedo (in the same health district but out of dioxin polluted zone). At each follow-up a questionnaire was administered and biochemical tests, skin examination and electrophysiologic measurements were performed. Biochemical indicators of hepatic function and nerve conduction studies did not show either significant differences between groups or temporal trends. Chloracne was shown to be clinically reversible: all the chloracne cases (except for one subject) clinically recovered by 1983. The discrepancy between our results and the previous experiences can be related to: different type of exposure, target population and interval since exposure.
Accidents, Occupational↗
[Carpal tunnel syndrome: therapeutic considerations].
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Carpal Tunnel Syndrome↗
Potential 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin exposure of Seveso decontamination workers: a controlled prospective study.
In 1976, an explosion at the Industrie Chimiche-Meda-Società Azionaria (ICMESA) plant in Meda, near the Italian town of Seveso, released a cloud of aerosol containing 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD), which contaminated the surrounding area. Clean-up of the highly polluted area of Seveso started on May 1980: in order to avoid exposure to significant levels of TCDD, safety measures are being used, but a potential exposure cannot be ruled out. A prospective study was set up at the beginning of the clean-up procedures, and laboratory tests are being used to evaluate trends among the decontamination workers. A reference group who met eligibility criteria at the preemployment examination was selected from employees of the same firm employing the decontamination was selected from employees of the same firm employing the decontamination workers. Medical examinations and laboratory tests have been performed on both the exposed and nonexposed groups at the same facilities. Analysis of the first follow-up period did not show any remarkable changes in a battery of laboratory tests of the exposed and nonexposed groups.
Adult↗
Smooth pursuit eye movements among storage battery workers.
Eleven male workers in a battery storage plant with lead and erythrocyte protoporphyrin blood actual levels greater than 50 and 100 micrograms %, respectively, and 18 male controls without lead exposure were tested by a clinical pendular eye tracking test (PETT). Each worker underwent a series of lead absorption measurements including blood lead, urinary lead, erythrocyte protoporphyrin, delta-aminolevulinic acid dehydratase activity, and urinary delta-aminolevulinic acid. The SPEMs were evaluated by an eye tracking technique. The subjects followed a horizontally moving target which, in the form of a luminous spot on a dark background, was projected onto a screen placed 1 m from the subject. The maximum predicted eye movement velocity during tracking was about 30 degrees/s. Skin electrodes were applied on the outer canthi of both eyes and SPEM were plotted on a polygraph, recording both the actual eye movements and the corresponding first derivative. Our findings suggest that lead workers display a disorder of motor coordination of SPEMs system, and the PETT is useful, when associated with biochemical data, to evaluate the degree of subclinical damage of nervous system during lead poisoning.
Adult↗
Workers' participation and control in Italy: the case of occupational medicine.
This article sets forth a historical and current analysis of (a) the occupational health services in Italy; and (b) the political, economic, and social forces that determined them. Special focus is placed on the analysis of the events leading to the establishment in 1969 of forms of direct democracy at the workplace, i.e. workers' committees, and their consequences for the occupational health services. Also described and analyzed are the responsibilities and modus operandi of these committees in the creation and reproduction of scientific knowledge at the point of production. The relationship between the workers' committees, the "experts," and the institutions of medicine, as well as that between the workers' committees, political parties, and the trade unions, is also discussed. An update on the impact that recent political developments have had on these workers' committees concludes the article.
Community Participation↗
[Use of voltametry with a stripped anode in the analysis of lead in the hair].
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Electrodiagnosis↗
Sperm count suppression without endocrine dysfunction in lead-exposed men.
To determine if increased lead absorption was associated with sperm count suppression or perterbation of the hypothalamopituitary system, we compared battery workers (N = 18), who were exposed to high airborne lead levels, with cement workers (N = 18), who were exposed to ambient lead levels. Blood lead, urinary lead, semen lead, and zinc protoporphyrin concentrations were markedly elevated (p less than .001) in battery workers. Battery workers had a significantly shifted (p less than .025) frequency distribution of sperm count (median count, 45 vs. 73 X 10(6) cells/cc, respectively). There were no significant differences between the two groups in mean follicle-stimulating hormone, testosterone, prolactin, luteinizing hormone, or total neutral 17-ketosteroid levels. Potential confounding factors (alcohol, cigarette, and coffee consumption, frequency of intercourse, and days of abstinence prior to semen donation) were not significantly different between the two groups. These results suggest a direct toxic effect of increased lead absorption on sperm production or transport in man.
Alcohol Drinking↗
Sperm count suppression without endocrine dysfunction in lead-exposed men.
To determine if increased lead absorption was associated with sperm count suppression or perterbation of the hypothalamopituitary system, we compared battery workers (N = 18), who were exposed to high airborne lead levels, with cement workers (N = 18), who were exposed to ambient lead levels. Blood lead, urinary lead, semen lead, and zinc protoporphyrin concentrations were markedly elevated (p less than .001) in battery workers. Battery workers had a significantly shifted (p less than .025) frequency distribution of sperm count (median count, 45 vs. 73 X 10(6) cells/cc, respectively). There were no significant differences between the two groups in mean follicle-stimulating hormone, testosterone, prolactin, luteinizing hormone, or total neutral 17-ketosteroid levels. Potential confounding factors (alcohol, cigarette, and coffee consumption, frequency of intercourse, and days of abstinence prior to semen donation) were not significantly different between the two groups. These results suggest a direct toxic effect of increased lead absorption on sperm production or transport in man.
Adult↗
Effects of Aroclor 1254 on intercellular communication in human keratinocytes.
It has been previously described that Aroclor 1254 can inhibit GJIC in rodent liver cells where it is known to be a tumor promoter, while the possibility that Aroclor 1254 exerts its inhibitory effects on GJIC in human keratinocytes and acts as a human skin tumor promoter, deserves further attention. In the present study the effects of Aroclor 1254 were examined on gap junction channel permeability, on connexin 43 (Cx 43) expression at mRNA and protein level and on ultrastructural modification to add further experimental evidence to its inhibitory effect on GJIC. The results were compared to those induced by 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol-13 acetate (TPA), a tumor promoter known to be a potent inhibitor of GJIC in human skin cells and to those induced by benzo[a]pyrene (B[a]P) known for its genotoxic activity. Our data show increased Cx 43 protein expression in Aroclor 1254 and TPA-treated cultures compared to controls, decreased Cx 43 protein level in those exposed to B[a]P, while Cx 43 gene expression (Cx 43 mRNA) was unaffected by the treatments. In Aroclor and TPA-treated keratinocytes, the ultrastructural examination showed residues of junctional systems expressed by specular, short tracts of the faced plasma membranes. In contrast, the contacts between plasma membranes of adjacent B[a]P treated keratinocytes were more extended. A clear inhibition of gap junction channel permeability due to Aroclor 1254 and TPA was also manifest by Lucifer yellow dye test compared to B[a]P-treated cultures where dye spreading to the neighbouring cells and to the extracellular space occurred. The present data, in addition to confirming inhibition of GJIC mediated by Aroclor 1254 in human keratinocytes, which were found to be comparable to those induced by TPA, suggest that GJIC inhibition is associated with increased Cx 43 protein expression without significant modification of its gene expression.
Analysis of Variance↗
[Bonferroni in biomedical research].
The statistical methods for multiple comparisons are described in the paper. The pros and cons of Bonferroni correction versus more recent methods such as Holm correction are outlined. The lack of scientific consensus on the methods to be used in the different areas of biomedical research is shown by the disagreements, often quite harsh, between different statisticians. The papers presented at the meeting held in September 2001 in memory of Carlo Emilio Bonferroni, Rector of the Istituto Superiore di Scienze Economiche e Commerciali di Bari from 1925 to 1933 are summarized. In the meeting there was the historical reconstruction of the Bonferroni correction, from Boole (1850) to Olive Dunn (1959). In the meeting there was also a presentation concerning Bonferroni's ideas (he was a moderate frequentist) in the field of probability, appreciated even by a strong Bayesian such as de Finetti in his memorial talk given in 1961, one year after Bonferroni's death.
Biometry↗
[Occupational epidemiology in Italy].
The development of Occupational Epidemiology in Italy is closely correlated with the political and social awareness of the needs of preventive strategies in the workplace. In the late '60s the Trade Unions supported a model of intervention based on the involvement of the so-called "Homogeneous group of workers" in the validation of the preventive measures taken on the workplace. In spite of the shortcomings of the model, it was extremely effective resulting in enhanced perception of the priority of preventive strategies and in the formation within the National Health Service of the Occupational Health Services. In Italy over the period 1973-2002 there has been an impressive trend of research in field of occupational epidemiology (a search on Medline shows an increasing trend over the years and, in terms of international comparison, higher figures than in Germany, France and Spain). Occupational Epidemiology is now present in the activities of the local Occupational Health Services and in the teaching activities of the Medical Schools throughout the country.
Epidemiology↗
[Epidemiologic surveillance in occupational carcinogenesis].
Research on occupational cancer epidemiology has been an important area of occupational health in Italy. While according to epidemiological estimates the proportion of all cancers attributable to occupational factor is about 4%, the number of compensated occupational cancers in Italy is remarkably lower. Re.Na.M., OCCAM and ISOD projects are example of epidemiological surveillance and can serve as basis for ad hoc studies.
Adult↗
[Analysis of occupational injuries using the new database developed for prevention in the workplace].
In Italy occupational injuries still represent a serious medical, social, and economic issue in spite of the improvement in working conditions, and an improved attention to occupational safety from both legislators and employers. In Apulia we have evaluated the new data record by INAIL (National Institute for Insurance against Occupational Injuries) reporting the occupational injuries occurred in 2000 and compensated within the following year. The new data record represents a remarkable improvement, from the epidemiological point of view, compared to the old one. However, the statistical analysis is still not completely comparable to the international epidemiological indicators. Nevertheless, the coming data base will contain the first data codified in conformity with the new European recording system "ESAW/3" adopted by INAIL since January 1st 2002.
Accidents, Occupational↗
[Environmental pollution and short-term effects on human health in industrialized urban areas].
Several studies investigating the adverse short-term effects of air pollution indicate that even concentrations of air pollutants close to or lower than air quality standards could negatively affect respiratory and cardiovascular health. Therefore, it seems crucial to develop knowledge about health adverse effects in industrialized urban areas. A time-series study on the association between air pollution levels and daily mortality and hospital admissions for respiratory and cardiovascular diseases is currently carried out in the town of Taranto, "area at high environmental risk" according to WHO because of the presence of several heavy industries and elevated rates for all-causes and all cancer mortality, higher than regional mortality rates, especially for lung cancer.
Environmental Pollution↗
[Mortality among workers employed in the production of pulp and paper in Apulia].
The authors studied a cohort of 2660 pulp and paper workers in Capitanata, Apulia (Italy). All workers with at least 1 year of employment on January 1 1965 or thereafter until march 30, 2000 where studied. Standardized Mortality Ratios (SMRs) were used to compare the mortality rates of the cohort with those of Apulian population. Ninetyfive percent confidence intervals (CIs) for SMRs were obtained. Cancer risks significantly associated with work where observed: all causes for males (SMR 112.09, 95% CI 104.91-119.77), brain cancer for males (SMR 206.04, 95% CI 103.04-412.01), digestive tract for males (SMR 126.78, CI 100.63-159.73). Association with other malignancies are suggested in this study for Laryngeal and Kidney. These malignancies have been associated with different exposures in the production cycle: biocides (Kidney), Formaldehyde (Kidney, Brain). Unclear is the risk factor for the excess showed in digestive tract cancer.
Chemical Industry↗