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Biomedical subjects

K Katsouyanni

Publications and source records attributed to K Katsouyanni.

At least 73 records · Page 4Linked to original sources
PubMed1993

An investigation of hostile and alexithymic characteristics in breast cancer patients.

Two measures of personality characteristics, the Personality Deviance Scale and the Toronto Alexithymia Scale, were administered to a total sample of 448 women and a subsample of 100 women, respectively, attending two breast-screening centers in Athens. The relative risk of breast cancer between women with low denigratory attitudes towards others and women with high scores in this scale was 2.31. Statistically significant relations were not noted between the mean scores of alexithymia factors and breast cancer diagnosis. Our findings point to the conclusion that breast cancer patients can be distinguished from healthy women on the basis of their cognitive activity, characterized by rare denigratory thoughts.

Adult↗
PubMed1993

The traditional Greek diet.

Data from several studies are presented which suggest that the traditional Greek diet still exists in several parts of Greece and several segments of the population. The most profound changes in dietary intakes in recent years concern the increase in the consumption of meat and the decrease in the consumption of pulses.

Adult↗
PubMed1993

The macronutrient composition of the Greek diet: estimates derived from six case-control studies.

Nutritional data concerning the comparison (control) series of six case-control studies undertaken in the 1980s in Athens were used to estimate the percent energy intake from major macronutrient groups in the contemporary Greek diet. The data were generated by interviewer-administered semi-quantitative food frequency questionnaires in the context of studies probing the nutritional aetiology of several chronic diseases. The analyses were eventually based on 228 men and 610 women 40-79 years old. The main results were as follows: (i) age has very little effect on the proportion of energy intake from the macronutrients studied, although a declining trend is evident with respect to total energy intake; (ii) the proportion of energy intake from saturated fat and monounsaturated fat and, accordingly, total fat is higher among women than among men; (iii) in the Athenian (urban) Greek population in the 1980s, the proportion of energy derived from proteins is about 19%, from carbohydrates is about 37% and from fats is about 44%; and (iv) the P/S ratio is approximately 1:4 whereas the M/S ratio is approximately 1:1, although the latter ratio may be underestimated. It is concluded that low total fat intake is not a characteristic of the Greek diet and cannot explain the apparently health-promoting consequences of this diet.

Adult↗
PubMed1992

Active and passive smoking and pathological indicators of lung cancer risk in an autopsy study.

OBJECTIVE: The association between involuntary smoking and lung cancer has been supported by most epidemiologic studies, but a number of authors and interest groups claim that the possibility of bias has not been excluded. Few autopsy-based studies have explored the role of active smoking and other exposures in lung carcinogenesis, and none has been previously done to examine the role of passive smoking. We have undertaken such an autopsy-based study in Athens, Greece. DESIGN: Lung specimens were taken at autopsy from 400 persons 35 years of age or older, of both genders, who had died within 4 hours from a cause other than respiratory or cancer in Athens or the surrounding area. For each person at least seven tissue blocks were taken from the main and lobar bronchi and at least five blocks from the parenchyma, including an average of about 20 smaller cartilaginous bronchi and membranous bronchioles. The specimens were examined without knowledge of the exposures of the particular subject in Turin, Italy. For 283 (71%) of the subjects the preservation of the bronchial epithelium was satisfactory for pathological examination, and for 206 among them (73%) an interview could be arranged with their next of kin, focusing on smoking habits of the deceased and their spouses, as well as other variables. The interviewers were not aware of the results of the pathological examinations. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE: Specimens were examined for basal cell hyperplasia, squamous cell metaplasia, cell atypia, and (in membranous bronchioles and bronchiolo-alveolar airways) mucous cell metaplasia, ie, pathological entities that may be lung cancer risk indicators or epithelial, possibly precancerous, lesions (EPPL). The gland and wall thicknesses were also measured and their ratio calculated (Reid Index). RESULTS: In comparison with nonsmokers, EPPL values were significantly higher among current smokers and higher, but not significantly so, among former smokers. Furthermore, EPPL values were significantly higher among deceased nonsmoking women married to smokers rather than to nonsmokers. In this set of data neither occupation nor residence was associated with EPPL, but this could be due to the poor correlation of residential history with exposure to air pollution and the lack of adequate standardization of contemporary Greek occupations. The Reid Index was higher among smokers and former smokers in comparison with nonsmokers, among subjects with mainly urban residence in comparison with those with mainly rural residence, and among nonsmoking women married to smokers in comparison with those married to nonsmokers, but none of these differences was statistically significant. CONCLUSION: These results provide support to the body of evidence linking passive smoking to lung cancer, even though they are based on a study methodologically different from those that have previously examined this association.

Adult↗
PubMed1992

Pregnancy estrogens in relation to coffee and alcohol intake.

Total estrogen (TE), estradiol (E2), estriol (E3), and human placental lactogen (hPL) levels were determined by radioimmunoassay in the blood of 141 pregnant women during their 26th and 31st weeks of pregnancy and the results were studied in relation to coffee and alcohol intake. After controlling for maternal age, maternal weight at the corresponding week of pregnancy, parity, and tobacco smoking, as well as for mutual confounding effects, coffee intake, ascertained at the 26th week, was found to be negatively related to pregnancy E2 levels (P = 0.04 during the 26th week, and P = .16 during the 31st week), whereas alcohol intake, also ascertained at the 26th week, was found to be positively related to pregnancy TE levels (P = .04 during the 26th week, and P = .18 during the 31st week). The negative relation between coffee consumption on the one hand and E2 (and possibly TE) levels on the other may be responsible for the inverse association between maternal coffee intake and birth weight; the latter association has been repeatedly confirmed in the literature, although it was neither strong nor statistically significant in the present study. The relations of maternal coffee and alcohol consumption with pregnancy estrogen levels, if confirmed, could be utilized in studies exploring the role of prenatal exposure to these hormones in the etiology of gonadal germ-cell tumors and possibly other diseases.

Adult↗
PubMed1992

Antibody responses to hepatitis C virus by second-generation immunoassays in a cohort of patients with bleeding disorders.

The antibody responses and the prevalence patterns of antibodies to hepatitis C virus (anti-HCV) in a cohort of patients (n = 210) with bleeding disorders were studied using a first-generation and a second-generation enzyme immunoassays (EIA-1, EIA-2) as well as a second-generation recombinant immunoblot assay (RIBA-2). The anti-HCV prevalence as determined by EIA-1 and EIA-2 was 183/210 (87.1%) and 197/210 (93.8%), respectively (p = 0.0026). None of the 17 EIA-2(+)/EIA-1(-) samples was scored nonreactive by RIBA-2. At follow-up, samples of 123 patients were tested. Twenty-nine out of 111 patients reactive by EIA-1 seroreverted according to EIA-1 while the seroreversion rate with EIA-2 was 0 out of the 121 (p < 10(-8)). The anti-HCV prevalence by EIA-2 was 150/154 (97.4%) in anti-HIV-1-positive individuals and 47/56 (83.9%) in the anti-HIV-1-negative ones (p = 0.001). However, high assay signals (OD 492 nm > 2.0) were observed in 94/150 (62.7%) and 45/47 (95.7%) of the anti-HIV-1-positive and -negative patients, respectively (p = 10(-5)). The decreasing anti-HCV reactivity among anti-HIV-1-positive individuals was mainly due to diminishing c33c reactivity. Seroconversion to anti-HCV was observed in 3/7 (42.9%) cases with acute icteric non-A, non-B hepatitis by both EIA-1 and EIA-2, while the remaining 4 cases had detectable levels of anti-HCV 1-18 months before the acute episode.

Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome↗
PubMed1992

Attitudes of a Mediterranean population to the truth-telling issue.

The attitudes of the Greeks, a Mediterranean population, to the issue of telling the truth to the patient have been studied. There is no clear answer to the question: 'Do the Greeks wish to be informed of the nature of their illness?'. The answer is: 'It depends'. It depends on age, education, family status, occupation, place of birth and residence and on whether or not they are religious people. However, it does not depend on their sex--men and women have similar reactions to the issue of truth-telling. Although the present study shows lower percentages of those who wish to know the truth than studies on other populations, the conclusion is that, emphasising the need for good communication between doctors and patients, doctors should not lie, but should disclose to their patients the part of the truth they are ready to accept.

Adult↗
PubMed1992

Diet, pregnancy estrogens and their possible relevance to cancer risk in the offspring.

Total estrogens, estradiol and estriol were determined by radioimmunoassay in the blood of 141 pregnant women during their 26th and 31st weeks of pregnancy, and the results were correlated with dietary patterns and nutrient intakes during pregnancy, assessed through a semiquantitative food frequency questionnaire. No food group or nutrient showed a significant (p less than 0.05) association with any of the examined hormones at both the 26th and the 31st week of pregnancy. Relatively more consistent were a positive association between consumption of starchy roots (potatoes) and all the indicated hormones, and a negative association between vitamin A and estradiol and total estrogens; however, the multitude of comparisons hinders a biologic interpretation at this time. There was suggestive evidence that weight gain up to the 31st week of pregnancy was positively associated with both total estrogens (p = 0.09) and estradiol (p = 0.11). The present study has limitations reflecting the relatively small sample size and the problems inherent in epidemiologic methods assessing nutritional intakes. However, the findings suggest that quantitative aspects of diet, as reflected in pregnancy weight gain, may be more important than dietary composition in influencing levels of pregnancy estrogens and in affecting the occurrence of gonadal germ cell tumors and other conditions that may be associated with them.

Body Weight↗
PubMed1991

The association between alcohol and breast cancer risk: evidence from the combined analysis of six dietary case-control studies.

Data from 1,575 cases and 1,974 controls enrolled in 6 previously conducted case-control studies of diet and breast cancer have been analysed with respect to alcohol intake. There appears to be an absence of any association between consumption of up to 40 g of alcohol per day and risk of breast cancer, and a highly statistically significant and consistent elevated risk of breast cancer for drinkers of 40 g or more of alcohol per day, for whom the relative risk, as compared with that of non-drinkers, is 1.69 (95% confidence interval 1.19 to 2.40). This association is not due to confounding by a number of diet-related factors, including total calories, fat, fibre and vitamin C.

Adult↗
PubMed1991

A case-control study of air pollution and tobacco smoking in lung cancer among women in Athens.

BACKGROUND: A case-control study exploring the role of smoking and outdoor air pollution in the causation of lung cancer, by histologic type, in nonsmoking women, was undertaken in Athens between 1987 and 1989. METHODS: One hundred one women with lung cancer and 89 comparison women with fractures or other orthopedic conditions, all permanent residents of Greater Athens, were included in the study. Smoking habits were ascertained through interviews, whereas lifetime exposure to air pollution was assessed by linking blindly lifelong residential and employment addresses of all subjects with objectively estimated or presumed air pollution levels. RESULTS: The age-adjusted relative risk and 95% confidence intervals for lung cancer among current smokers compared with nonsmokers was 3.40 (1.75-6.61); it was 7.43 (2.88-19.13) among those smoking for more than 30 years and 7.46 (2.40-23.17) among those smoking more than 20 cigarettes per day. The age-adjusted relative risk was 1.70 (0.75-3.89) for adenocarcinoma and 6.45 (2.73-15.25) for other histologic types of lung cancer; statistically significant dose-response trends were evident for both histologic groups. Air pollution levels were associated with increased risk for lung cancer but the relative risk was small and statistically not significant. However, when both air pollution and duration (or quantity) of tobacco smoking, as well as their interaction, were introduced in a multiple logistic regression model, the interaction term was significant at the suggestive level of 0.10. CONCLUSION: Whereas there is no effect of air pollution among nonsmokers, the relative risk contrasting extreme quartiles of air pollution among smokers of 30 years duration was 2.23. The interaction was almost exclusively accounted for by the nonadenocarcinoma lung tumors.

Aged↗
PubMed1991

Diet and peripheral arterial occlusive disease: the role of poly-, mono-, and saturated fatty acids.

A case-control study concerning the association between diet and peripheral arterial occlusive disease was conducted in Athens, Greece. The case series consisted of 100 patients with this disease, whereas controls were 100 patients with conditions requiring minor surgical care who were admitted to the same teaching hospital. Diet was ascertained through a semiquantitative food frequency questionnaire. Nutrient intakes for individuals were estimated by multiplying the nutrient content of a selected typical portion size for each specified food item by the frequency that the food was used per month and summing these estimates for all food items. Data were analyzed using multiple logistic regression procedures, controlling for total energy intake by taking nutrient residuals and by using multivariate nutrient density models. Saturated fatty acids (odds ratio (OR) and 95% confidence interval (CI) contrasting the 75th centile (upper) with the 25th centile = 1.96 and 1.14-3.39), proteins (OR = 2.86, 95% CI 1.47-5.55), and dietary cholesterol (OR = 6.07, 95% CI 2.74-13.46) were associated with increased risk of peripheral arterial occlusive disease, whereas polyunsaturated fatty acids (OR = 0.48, 95% CI 0.24-0.93) and crude fiber (OR = 0.33, 95% CI 0.17-0.64) were related to reduced risk. Monounsaturated fatty acids and, by inference, olive oil occupy an intermediate neutral position between polyunsaturates and saturates (corresponding OR = 1.14, 95% CI 0.68-1.91). Higher intakes of fiber and vitamin C were associated with lower risk of peripheral arterial occlusive disease. The low occurrence of atherosclerotic diseases in Greece and other Mediterranean countries may be due to the substitution of olive oil in place of saturated fats and/or the consumption of a diet high in vegetables, fruits, and other fiber-containing foods.

Arterial Occlusive Diseases↗
PubMed1991

The effect of Mycoplasma arthritidis infection on the phagocytic activity of macrophages in rats and mice.

The phagocytic activity of mononuclear phagocytes of A/J mice and Wistar rats was estimated by the carbon clearance test following injection of Mycoplasma arthritidis. In mice, the overall phagocytic activity was significantly increased at the end of the first week (P less than 0.0001), but the increase was marginal by the third and fourth weeks after injection. A significant increase in the relative weight of liver and spleen was observed even when phagocytic activity had returned to levels similar to those of controls (P less than 0.001). In rats, the overall phagocytic activity was significantly increased until the fourth week (P less than 0.00001). There was not, however, an increase in the relative weight of liver and spleen as observed for the mice. The results are discussed in the context of factors contributing to the pathogenic mechanisms responsible for differences in the patterns of arthritis due to mycoplasma observed in mice and rats.

Animals↗
PubMed1991

Diet and cancer: the role of case-control studies.

The advantages and disadvantages of case-control studies of the role of nutrition in cancer etiology are examined. The results, the scientific conclusions and the policy implications of several such studies undertaken in Athens are discussed.

Bias↗
PubMed1991

Diet and urine estrogens among postmenopausal women.

Creatinine-adjusted levels of estrone, estradiol and estriol were determined in overnight urine specimens from 88 postmenopausal women from Athens, Greece, and were correlated with daily nutrient intakes estimated through a semiquantitative food frequency questionnaire. Although obesity was positively and significantly related to all three urinary estrogens and their total, none of the investigated macro- or micronutrients was significantly or suggestively associated to any of these urinary estrogens, after controlling for energy intake, reproductive and biosocial variables. These results suggest that quantitative rather than qualitative aspects of nutrition affect the levels of postmenopausal estrogens, although endogenous factors could also be responsible for the association of these estrogens with obesity. Alcohol intake was also positively associated with urinary estrogens (mainly estrone and estradiol), after controlling for energy intake, obesity and the other indicated variables.

Alcohol Drinking↗
PubMed1991

The outcome of benign thyroid nodules correlates with the findings of fine needle biopsy.

204 patients with a single or dominant 'cold' thyroid nodule were treated with l-thyroxine, 150-250 micrograms/d, for 4 to 12 months. The two clinicians who evaluated the evolution of the nodules knew that fine-needle biopsy (FNB) had excluded malignancy, but ignored any other morphologic data of the FNB smears. Good outcome, i.e. disappearance of the nodule or definite decrease in its size, was observed in 66 cases (32%). This good clinical outcome was correlated with various morphologic characteristics of the FNB aspirate. The nodule was more likely to regress if FNB showed much colloid, many degenerative changes and many phagocytes, whereas the presence of extensive hyperplasia, lymphocytes or fibrosis were associated with an unfavourable prognosis. With logistic regression, controlling for the confounding effects of sex, age, clinical and histological picture and thyroxine dose, significant correlations were shown with the presence of colloid, hyperplasia and fibrosis. It is concluded that the morphologic characteristics of the FNB aspirate may, to some extent, predict the outcome of cold thyroid nodules.

Adult↗
PubMed1991

Correlation of early pathological lesions in the bronchial tree with environmental exposures: study objectives and preliminary findings.

Lung specimens were taken at autopsy from 214 subjects aged 35 years and over who had died from nonpulmonary causes in Athens or the surrounding countryside. The samples were coded and examined for entities thought to be linked to environmental exposures, reflecting epithelial, possibly precancerous, lesions, as well as for morphological features, which were summarized using Reid's index. Of the 214 specimens, 142 were suitable for pathological examination. Next-of-kin of 101 of the dead people were identified and asked about the subject's exposure to active smoking, passive smoking, possible occupational hazards, dietary factors and proxy indicators of air pollution (residence). Preliminary analysis, controlling for age and sex, indicates that active smoking is related, although not statistically significantly, to both the Reid index (difference, 0.28, corresponding to a one-tailed p value of 0.07) and epithelial, possibly precancerous lesions (difference, 16.7, corresponding to a one-tailed p value of 0.09). Nonsignificant differences were found in the preliminary analysis of this ongoing study with respect to the other environmental factors examined.

Adult↗
PubMed1990

Age at menarche, age at menopause, height and obesity as risk factors for breast cancer: associations and interactions in an international case-control study.

The importance of age at menarche, age at menopause, height, and obesity as risk factors for breast cancer, and the possible interactions among these factors in breast cancer causation were investigated in a data set collected in the late 1960's, in an international multicenter case-control study. Multiple logistic regression procedures were used to model data from 3,993 breast cancer cases and 11,783 controls from 7 study centers representing the range of international variation of breast cancer incidence. Height and obesity (measured through the weight/height2 index) were independent risk factors for breast cancer among post-menopausal but not pre-menopausal women; post-menopausal women taller by 10 cm had a 12% higher risk of breast cancer (95% confidence interval, CI, 3-21%) and post-menopausal women of average height (say 158 cm) had an 11% higher risk of breast cancer (CI 7-16%) when they were heavier by 10 kg (and, therefore, more obese by 4 kg/m2). Age at menarche was a risk factor among both pre-menopausal and post-menopausal women, a delay of 2 years corresponding to a 10% reduction in breast cancer risk (CI 6-15%). Age at menopause was also a breast cancer risk factor, women with menopause at each 5 year age difference having a 17% higher risk of breast cancer (CI 11-22%). There is evidence of an interaction (deviation from the logistic regression-postulated multiplicativity) between obesity and age at menarche, implying that the protective effect of late menarche may not apply to overweight women or that late menarche may become detrimental in obese women. The estimated relative risk coefficients, when applied to average risk factor levels observed among control women, can explain only a small fraction of the difference in breast cancer incidence between Boston and Tokyo.

Adult↗