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Biomedical subjects

S Belli

Publications and source records attributed to S Belli.

At least 55 records · Page 3Linked to original sources
PubMed1994

Mortality of Sardinian lead and zinc miners: 1960-88.

The mortality of 4740 male workers of two lead and zinc mines was followed up from 1960 to 1988. Exposure to respirable dust was comparable in the two mines, but the median concentration of silica in respirable dust was 10-fold higher in mine B (12.8%) than in mine A (1.2%), but the mean annual exposure to radon daughters in underground workplaces differed in the opposite direction (mine A: 0.13 working levels (WL), mine B: 0.011 WL). Total observed deaths (1205) were similar to expected figures (1156.3) over a total of 119 390.5 person-years at risk. Underground workers of mine B had significant increases in risk of pulmonary tuberculosis (SMR 706, 95% confidence interval (95% CI) 473-1014) and non-malignant respiratory diseases (SMR 518; 95% CI 440-1606), whereas the only significant excess at mine A was for non-malignant respiratory diseases (SMR 246; 95% CI 191-312). Total cancer and lung cancer mortality did not exceed the expectation in the two mines combined. A 15% excess mortality for lung cancer, increased up to an SMR 204 (95% CI 89-470) for subjects employed > or = 26 years, was, however, found among underground workers in mine A who on the average experienced an exposure to radon daughters 10-fold higher than those of mine B. By contrast, despite their higher exposure to silica, mine B underground workers experienced a lower than expected lung cancer mortality. A ninefold increase in risk of peritoneal and retroperitoneal cancer combined was also found among underground workers of mine A (SMR 917; 95% CI 250-2347; based on four deaths). A causal association with workplace exposures is unlikely, however, as the SMR showed an inverse trend by duration of employment. These findings are consistent with low level exposure to radon daughters as a risk factor for lung cancer among metal miners. Exposure to silica at the levels estimated for the mine B underground environment did not increase the risk of lung cancer.

Adult↗
PubMed1992

Citalopram's ability to increase the extracellular concentrations of serotonin in the dorsal raphe prevents the drug's effect in the frontal cortex.

Administered intraperitoneally to rats at 1 mg/kg, citalopram, a potent and selective inhibitor of serotonin uptake, significantly increased dialysate serotonin in the dorsal raphe, but not in the frontal cortex. At 10 mg/kg citalopram had a greater effect on raphe serotonin and a moderate and short-lasting increase in the dialysate serotonin in the frontal cortex. Citalopram 1 mg/kg i.p. significantly increased the extracellular concentration of serotonin in the frontal cortex of rats which had received a continuous infusion of 1 microM methiothepine in the dorsal raphe, a condition which by itself did not change cortical serotonin concentrations. The results suggest that the ability of serotonin uptake inhibitors to enhance the extracellular concentrations of serotonin in the dorsal raphe attenuates the drug's effect in the frontal cortex.

Animals↗
PubMed1992

A case-control study of cancer of the nose and paranasal sinuses and occupational exposures.

The association between nasal cancer and various occupations was investigated in a case-control study in the provinces of Verona and Vicenza (northeastern Italy) and Siena (central Italy). Cases of malignant epithelial neoplasm of the nasal cavities and paranasal sinuses diagnosed in the years 1982-1987 in the hospitals of Verona, Legnago, Bussolengo, Vicenza, and Siena comprised the study. Controls were patients admitted to the same hospitals as the cases, with any diagnosis except chronic rhino-sinusal disease and nasal bleeding. Age, gender, residency, and date of admission were taken into account by matching. Cases and controls, or their next of kin, were interviewed or required to fill in a mailed questionnaire; the overall response rate was 70%. Altogether, 78 cases and 254 controls provided information on occupational history. Significantly increased risks were associated (in males) with work in the wood industry (odds ratio [O.R.]: 5.8; 90% confidence interval [C.I.]: (2.2-16) and in the leather industry (6.8; 1.9-25). Textile workers, furnacemen, construction workers, and workers with possible exposure to organic dusts showed increased risks even if statistical significance was not reached.

Adenocarcinoma↗
PubMed1992

Cancer of the nose and paranasal sinuses in the metal industry: a case-control study.

The association between nasal cancer and work in the metal industry was investigated in a case-control study located in the province of Brescia, north eastern Italy. Thirty five cases of malignant epithelial neoplasms of the nasal cavity and paranasal sinuses who were resident in the province of Brescia and diagnosed or treated by the ear, nose, and throat department and the radiotherapy unit (Centro Alte Energie) of the Brescia Hospital in the years 1980-9 were included in the study. Controls (102) were patients affected by benign and malignant neoplasms of the head and neck who were resident in the Brescia Province and matched the cases by age and sex. All the subjects were interviewed by telephone. Metal workers showed an increased risk of nasal cancer (odds ratio (OR) 3.1; 90% confidence interval (90% CI) 0.48-20); a higher risk was associated with work in foundries (OR 5.9; 90 CI 0.77-46). Work in wood, leather, and textile industries was also associated with increased risk of nasal cancer.

Aged↗
PubMed1992

Mortality study of workers employed by the Italian National Institute of Health, 1960-1989.

A cohort mortality study was conducted to evaluate the cancer risk of workers employed by the National Institute of Health in Rome, Italy. Cancer mortality was evaluated for research staff. A deficit of overall cancer mortality was found for the men, but not for the women. Elevated (albeit statistically nonsignificant) standardized mortality ratios were found for cancer of the pancreas (men 155, women 236), cancer of the brain (men 159), lympho- and reticulosarcomas (men 233, women 512), and lymphatic and hematopoietic tumors (women 623). In addition the women had a statistically significantly elevated risk of breast cancer (288). Although most of these results, with the exception of breast cancer among the women, were not statistically significant, due to the limited study size, they point to the existence of excess risks for some tumors. The possibility that these increases are related to exposures occurring in the laboratory setting deserves further consideration.

Adult↗
PubMed1992

[Etiological epidemiology of tumors of the nasal cavities and the paranasal sinuses].

Etiologically-oriented epidemiologic studies on cancer of the nasal cavities and paranasal sinuses have been carried out since the beginning of the century. These studies showed that several chemical agents (chromates, nickel compounds, isopropylic alcohol, and mustard gas), and two occupational exposures (wood dust in the furniture industry and exposure to leather in shoe factories) were causally associated with nasal cancer. An increased risk has also been associated with several occupations (i.e. metalworker, textile worker, construction worker, and farmer) even in the apparent absence of causal agents. The first reports of an increased risk of nasal cancer in woodworkers and leather workers in Italy date back to 1980. Subsequent studies have provided estimates of the relative risk, ranging from 3.0 to 11.0 among woodworkers and from 8.1 to 47.1 among leatherworkers. Increased risks have been associated to the metal industry (relative risk ranging from 3.1 to 5.9), the textile industry (ranging from 2.9 to 17.0), the mining and construction industry (ranging from 2.3 to 5.3), and the agricultural industry (ranging from 1.9 to 3.3); all of these estimates are time- and place-specific. Moreover, the estimates are not reliable because of the small sample size, resulting from the low occurrence of the disease. The etiologic fraction for the population, taking into account both verified and suspected carcinogenic exposures, ranges between 50% and 65% in males. Relatively few cases of nasal cancer (all of them occurring in woodworkers) have been notified for workman's compensation; woodworkers with nasal cancer have received monetary compensation in Italy since 1988. Nasal cancer is an often fatal but largely preventable disease. Several verified and suspected occupational exposures are associated with this neoplasm. The reduction of dust and fumes in the air of the above mentioned work environments is recommended for reducing the occurrence of this disease.

Air Pollution↗
PubMed1991

A collaborative study of cancer incidence and mortality among vinyl chloride workers.

A large European multicentric cohort study has been coordinated by the International Agency for Research on Cancer with the objectives of investigating the dose-response relationship between liver cancer and exposure to vinyl chloride and assessing cancer risk for sites other than the liver. A nearly threefold increase in liver cancer was detected on the basis of 24 observed deaths and 8.4 expected (standardized mortality ratio 286, 95% confidence interval 186-425). The excess from liver cancer was clearly related to time since first exposure, duration of employment, and estimated ranked and quantitative exposures. Other cancer sites investigated on the basis of a priori hypotheses were either not in excess (lung) or apparently unrelated to the exposure variables (brain and lymphoma).

Adult↗
PubMed1991

[Epidemiologic surveillance of pleural mesothelioma in Italy].

A collaborative study has been performed in order to detect cases of pleural mesothelioma diagnosed or treated in Italy in the years 1984-88. Cases have been notified to ISS by 88 centres (clinics of thoracic surgery and respiratory diseases, oncologic centres, institutes of pathology), active in 14 Italian regions. Altogether, 575 cases (415 males and 160 females) have been included in the study. Information on occupation and/or on non occupational exposure to asbestos was available for 65% of the subjects, and the occurrence of definite or possible exposure to asbestos was estimated for 58% of them.

Asbestos↗
PubMed1990

[Biopsy of the minor salivary glands in Sjögren's syndrome].

Twenty subjects, 17 females and 3 males, mean age 55.9, with Sjögren's syndrome (13 cases: classical or secondary form--7 cases: sicca syndrome) were submitted to biopsy of the minor salivary glands of the lower lip. The histopathological findings from the salivary glands and the clinical aspects of each patient were separately evaluated, in order to find a possible connection between the degree of glandular impairment and the severity of the disease. As a result of their findings, the authors conclude that the biopsy of the salivary glands, while constituting an important element for diagnosis, cannot be considered a determining factor for making a prognosis, or for therapy, because of the extreme polymorphism in the histopathological findings, and for the relative nature of the respondents with the severity of the clinical aspects.

Adult↗
PubMed1988

Mortality among pyrite miners with low-level exposure to radon daughters.

Mortality among pyrite miners with low-level exposure to radon daughters. Scand J Work Environ Health 14 (1988) 280-285. A cohort mortality study was conducted with regard to a pyrite mine located in central Italy. Exposure to radon ranged from 0.12 to 0.36 working levels (WL) in the work areas; most measurements were around 0.2 WL. The concentration of free silica in the dust was less than 2%. The cohort was determined from company files and included 1,899 subjects. Mortality was studied for the years 1965-1983. The loss to follow-up was less than 2%. The standardized mortality ratio for all causes and all neoplasms was 97 and 107, respectively. That for lung cancer and for nonmalignant respiratory diseases was 131 (95% confidence interval 97-175) and 173 (95% confidence interval 135-231), respectively. It was estimated that the extra cases of lung cancer attributable to radon daughters numbered 13 per 10(6) person-years and working level month in the whole cohort and 21.3 per 10(6) person-years in the subcohort with 10-25 years of exposure.

Adult↗
PubMed1987

A cohort study on vinyl chloride manufacturers in Italy: study design and preliminary results.

A cohort mortality study of 5000 vinyl chloride manufacturers is ongoing in 9 Italian plants. They represent the entire workforce of those ever employed in the production of the monomer and its polymerization. The objectives of the study are to investigate the mortality of the exposed population and to clear up the carcinogenic spectrum of vinyl chloride. This article gives the results for 3 out of 9 plants, Rosignano, Ferrara and Ravenna, which represent about 25% of the total cohort. The expected deaths have been calculated using the mortality rates of the Italian population. For the deceased persons information from the death certificates were used in the analysis of mortality; additional clinical and pathological data were collected (best pathological evidence, b.p.e.). In Ferrara a statistically significant excess for all malignant tumors and lung cancer was detected. In Rosignano and Ravenna the number of observed deaths were small and therefore no comments can be made on cancer mortality. The cohort study is ongoing in the 6 remaining cohorts and the future analysis will consider duration and level of exposure and latency.

Adult↗
PubMed1985

Mortality studies of dockyard workers (longshoremen) in Italy.

A polycentric mortality study was performed in five Italian harbours: Savona, Marina di Carrara, Livorno, Civitavecchia, and Ravenna. The cohort included active and retired workers (longshoremen), who had been employed between 1960 and 1981. Causes of death were ascertained from death certificates; expected numbers of deaths were generated from age, sex, calendar year, and cause-specific national mortality rates. A low overall mortality was found, which is in agreement with procedures of health selection, typical of physically demanding jobs; an excess of lung cancer was, however, found in four out of five harbours.

Adult↗
PubMed1984

Arterial hypertension and noise: a cross-sectional study.

The occurrence of permanent arterial hypertension was studied among the workers of a textile plant (490 subjects) exposed to high frequency noise, at levels often exceeding 100 dBA. The prevalence of the disease among these workers was compared to that observed in a reference series (450 subjects). A prevalence rate ratio equal to 1.34 (1.14-1.57) was estimated, taking into account several determinants of disease acting as confounding factors in the study. The results, which are in good agreement with those obtained in similar studies, are discussed.

Adult↗
PubMed1981

[Surgical treatment in Cushing's disease (authors' translation)].

We are presenting a series of 23 patients with Cushing disease selected from a larger study in which the ectopic production of ACTH (paraneoplastic or tumoral), adrenal adenoma or carcinoma were discarded. Sixteen were female and seven male. Diagnosis was fundamentally realized by clinical manifestations derived from hypercortisolism (obesity, muscular atrophy, diabetes, osteoporosis or polyglubulia). The polytomography demonstrated a deformed sella in 19 patients. Endocrine exams showed an alteration in rhythm of Cortisol and elevated levels of urinary metabolites. Others exams, Liddle Test, Metopirona Test, or stimulation of exogenic ACTH did not always permit diagnosis of pituitary adenoma. Plasmatic dosage of ACTH is the best test although results did not always agree with clinical manifestations. In each case we performed clinical treatment in preparation for surgery and later selective removal of adenoma or total pituitary ablation by transphenoidal approach. Of 21 patients, we found an adenoma during surgery in 15; the other 6 on whom we performed a total hypophysectomy, the pathological study showed an adenoma in 5 and a hyperemic gland with thick capillaries in 1. Another type of treatment was used on 2 due to their age. Nine patients were given post-operative radiotherapy. We conclude that microsurgery by transphenoidal approach offers the best possibilities for patients with Cushing disease.

Adenoma↗
PubMed1980

Ultrastructural changes in Escherichia coli grown in divalent cation-deficient medium.

Escherichia coli strains B and K12 could grow in very limiting conditions of divalent cation deficiency. Growth curves showed a long lag period of about 30 h, followed by an exponential phase bringing the bacterial concentration to about 10(7) ml-1, with a 24 min doubling time, while the growth curves of control cultures were characterized by short lag periods, maximum populations of about 10(9) ml-1 and an 18 min doubling time. The DNA/protein ratio in bacteria grown in deficient medium was 0.48 compared with 0.21 for control bacteria. Significant differences were found in the ultrastructure of the two types of bacteria. Freeze-etched control cells showed the typical appearance with the protoplasmic fracture face of the cytoplasmic membrane (PFC) having a random distribution of intramembranous particles. Bacteria growing in deficient medium in exponential phase presented several particle-free areas on the PFC. At the beginning of the stationary phase, the particle-free zones became larger and crystalline structures were formed. These structural modifications, which increased with culture age, were never observed in bacteria grown in control medium. Optical diffraction analysis of the crystalline structures in freeze-etched cells revealed regular periodic arrays with a rhomboid repeating unit approximately 7.6 x 5.4 nm in dimension and an angle between the axes of about 73 degrees. Negative staining of isolated membranes of bacteria grown in deficient medium showed a more complex organization of the crystalline arrays, each unit being clearly composed of subunits.

Calcium↗