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Biomedical subjects

S Chinn

Publications and source records attributed to S Chinn.

At least 163 records · Page 9Linked to original sources
PubMed1986

Response to inhaled histamine and 24 hour sodium excretion.

A relation between the prevalence of asthma and economic development has been suggested by studies in migrants and other surveys in developing countries. That this correlation might be partially explained by an increased intake of salt in the diet is supported by the observation that sales of table salt in the different regions of England and Wales are independently correlated with mortality from asthma for men and for children. As part of a wider survey of asthma 138 men living in two Hampshire villages and aged 18-64 were given a bronchial histamine challenge test and had their 24 hour urinary excretion of sodium measured. Bronchial reactivity was strongly related to 24 hour excretion of sodium after allowing for the effects of age, atopy, and cigarette smoking, there being on average a 10-fold difference in reactivity over the 95% range of sodium excretion recorded in the study. The data suggest that a high sodium diet may potentiate bronchial reactivity.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1985

Exposure to cigarette smoking and children's growth.

An analysis of data from 5903 children from a study of primary schools in England and Scotland in 1982 showed that the number of cigarettes smoked by the parents at home was significantly associated with the attained height of their children. This relation was statistically significant after allowing for parents' height, child's birthweight, mother's smoking during pregnancy, overcrowding and number of older siblings. Number of cigarettes smoked at home was more strongly related to height than number of cigarettes smoked by the mother during pregnancy. The results suggest that passive smoking may have an effect on the height of a child independent of genetic factors, the social environment and mother's smoking in pregnancy. Whether this is a direct effect of parents' smoking on the child's growth remains unclear.

Body Height↗
PubMed1985

Investigations into the relations between respiratory illness in children, gas cooking and nitrogen dioxide in the U.K.

In 1977 an association was reported between the prevalence of respiratory illness and use of gas for cooking at home in a national sample of six to 11 year olds living in England and Scotland (p less than .10). Other variables such as social class and number of cigarette smokers at home did not seem to explain the association. As the gas cooker is an unflued appliance emitting a variety of pollutants during gas combustion it was suggested that indoor air pollution might explain the finding. Nitrogen dioxide (NO2) was suspected so a series of studies was conducted to investigate the distribution of levels of NO2 in the home, the relative contribution of sources of NO2 to indoor exposure and the relation between respiratory illness in six to 11 year olds and levels of NO2 in the home. The gas cooker was found to be one of the main sources of NO2 in the home. Winter weekly averages in kitchens with gas cookers had a mean of 112.2 ppb (n = 428, range 5-317 ppb). Levels in electric cooking kitchens were significantly lower (n = 87, mean 18 ppb, range 6-188 ppb). Studies of health indicated a relation between respiratory illness and bedroom levels of NO2 over the range 4-169 ppb (p .10). Results for living room levels of NO2 suggested a similar but non-significant relationship (p greater than .10). No relation was found for kitchen levels of NO2. For schoolchildren any effect on health from indoor NO2 is likely to be weak. However other sections of the population such as infants and the elderly who may spend more time indoors and are particularly susceptible to respiratory illness need to be studied to assess fully the impact that NO2 may be having on health.

Child↗
PubMed1984

How well can we predict coronary heart disease? Findings in the United Kingdom Heart Disease Prevention Project.

The probability of myocardial infarction developing over five years in a group of middle aged men was predicted with knowledge of their ages, blood pressures, cholesterol concentrations, and smoking habits as recorded in an initial screening examination. Although the top 15% of the risk distribution predicted 115 (32%) of the subsequent cases of myocardial infarction, there was a considerable overlap in predicted risk between those subjects who did and those who did not go on to develop a myocardial infarction. Of the subjects in the top 15% of risk, only 72 (7%) of those initially free of coronary heart disease and 43 (22%) of those initially with coronary heart disease actually developed a myocardial infarction over the subsequent five years. Thus, although a group of subjects at high risk can be identified, among whom will be a high proportion of potential victims of heart attack, many subjects will be wrongly classified. These findings may explain part of the difficulty in persuading patients of the potential benefits of reducing risks and highlight the need for research to improve the prediction of the development of coronary heart disease.

Age Factors↗
PubMed1984

Obesity and respiratory symptoms in primary school.

The association of weight for height and triceps skinfold with seven respiratory symptoms has been examined using logistic regression analysis in 7800 5 to 11 year old children (6200 in England and 1600 in Scotland). The results support the view that overweight children have a greater liability to some respiratory symptoms than other children. After allowing for age, sex, and social factors, significant (P less than 0.05) or borderline non-significant (P less than 0.1) positive associations were found between weight for height and the prevalence of bronchitis, 'chest ever wheezy', and 'colds usually going to the chest'. This suggests that some respiratory illness can be reduced by preventing children from becoming overweight. If this is correct, more than nutritional gains can be achieved by implementing an effective health education programme on obesity.

Child↗
PubMed1984

Parents' attitudes towards school meals for primary school children in 1981.

Parents' opinions on the school meals system were obtained for 6468 English and 1977 Scottish parents in 1981, a year after new legislation for the school meals system was introduced in the UK. Uptake of school meals was 54.5 per cent and 29.6 per cent in the English and Scottish areas respectively. This was lower than at any time in the 1970s. Subscribers to the system were mainly from poorer sectors of the community and were less critical of it. The high price for school meals was the main factor in England that explained whether a child would take a midday meal at school. The nutritional advantages and disadvantages of school meals were recognized as more important characteristics of the system than provision for the child of a safe place to stay, an opportunity for social interaction or a reduction in the mother's time spent travelling. Poor families in wealthier communities, more than elsewhere, may be reluctant to claim free school meals because the demand for the service in the wealthy areas is lower than in the poorer areas and an individual child may be more easily identified by their classmates as receiving free lunches. The readiness of parents to take the child out of the scheme if he or she dislikes the meals may result in catering planners in schools being more prone to make easily available convenience foods which are attractive to children instead of less popular but healthier food.

Attitude to Health↗
PubMed1983

The relation of the height of primary school children to population density.

The relation of the height of primary school children to population density, as measured at the 1971 census, was investigated for children in 21 study areas in England, using data from the 1972 survey of the National Study of Health and Growth. Shorter stature was found with increasing population density, and this relation remained after allowing for child's birthweight, mother's height, father's height, social class, number of siblings, and additionally a measure of home overcrowding. The results are in contrast to those found elsewhere, and are unlikely to indicate a cause-and-effect relationship between population density and height. The findings cannot be explained either by known differences between urban and rural areas in social characteristics or by plausible hypotheses of genetic heterogeneity.

Body Height↗
PubMed1983

Growth status and the risk of contracting primary tuberculosis.

A case of open tuberculous infection in a member of staff at a primary school resulted in an outbreak in which nearly a quarter of the children in the school contracted a primary infection. The growth status of these children was compared with that in the non-infected children before the outbreak and on two occasions after the outbreak. The children with tuberculous infection were taller and fatter than the controls before and after the outbreak but differences were not always statistically significant. Among children with a good nutritional status the thin and small child is at no greater risk of contracting primary tuberculous infection than other children.

Body Constitution↗
PubMed1983

School meals and the rate of growth of primary school children.

The effect of school meals on the rate of growth was assessed in two sets of children over one, two, and three-year periods in England and Scotland between 1973 and 1979. In all analyses children were subdivided into three groups: poor, not poor, and undefined, according to a set of questions on social circumstances. The rate of growth was assessed for children receiving school meals, lunches prepared at home, and those who changed scheme during the study period. No relation between rate of growth and uptake of school meals was found at any of the levels of poverty in England. In Scotland there was some indication in the poor group that children who received school meals had a smaller rate of growth than children having lunches prepared at home. There was inconclusive evidence that children from the poorer sectors of the community whose mother's worked outside the home may benefit from the school meals system. Although children selected for welfare support were smaller than other children, in so far as the design of the study allowed school meals during the 1970s did not increase the rate of growth of primary school children in any social stratum.

Body Height↗
PubMed1983

ACORN group, social class, and child health.

A Classification of Residential Neighborhoods (ACORN) and the Registrat General's social class classification were compared on measures of health and service use based on a sample of 5500 primary school children in England. ACORN was shown to differentiate at least as well as social class on the selected outcome measures and to identify small areas with particularly high rates of morbidity. Nevertheless, questions were raised concerning both the extent to which ACORN identifies variations independent of regional variations and the consistency of ranking of ACORN groups on health measures.

Birth Weight↗
PubMed1982

Comparative growth of primary schoolchildren from one and two parent families.

Data drawn from the National Study of Health and Growth enabled an examination to be made of the attained height, weight for height, and triceps skinfold of children from one and two parent families. Children from one parent families were shorter than children from two parent families; however, once heights had been adjusted for birthweight, number of siblings, mother's height, father's height, and mother's education this was no longer the case. An examination of the adjusting factors showed that low birthweights and shorter parents accounted for the shorter stature of the one parent family children. An examination of weight for height and triceps skinfold measurements indicated an increased tendency towards obesity in the one parent family children, although this difference was not statistically significant. The higher prevalence of low birthweights and shorter parents that account for the shorter stature of one parent children are factors that cannot be ignored in a consideration of the health and growth of this group of children and obesity may be a potential health problem among the one parent family children.

Body Height↗
PubMed1982

Female fat distribution-a simple classification based on two circumference measurements.

An alternative to the fat distribution (FD) score based on photographic measurements is constructed by discriminant analysis based on waist and thigh circumferences: Fat distribution (circumference) score (CFD score) = 29 log10 (waist circumference-36 log10 (thigh circumference)+10.5. The CFD score shows a correlation of 0.88 with the FD score over 54 female subjects, and can be used instead of, but not interchangeably with, the FD score to classify female fat distribution.

Adipose Tissue↗
PubMed1981

Some further results concerning regression to the mean.

Algebraic formulae are derived for the regression to the mean effect for a measurement whose population mean and variance change over time and for subpopulations selected according to initial value in any defined range. The distribution of values for the whole population is assumed to be normal. The results are applied to plasma cholesterol levels of participants in a dietary intervention study, some of whom were selected as having high initial levels. The formulae enable the effects of intervention to be separated from secular change and regression to the mean in studies for which this was not previously possible.

Adult↗
PubMed1981

Reproducible pyrolysis-gas chromatography of micro-organisms with solid stationary phases and isothermal oven temperatures.

Eight solid stationary phases were examined for their suitability for pyrolysis-gas chromatography (Py-GC) of micro-organisms. With temperature programming these phases offered little advantage over the traditional liquid phase Carbowax 20M, but at an isothermal analysis temperature of 100 degrees C their use solved many technical problems. Pyrograms were produced containing small numbers of baseline-resolved peaks which eluted within 8 to 25 min. Four to six specimens per hour could be examined with two pyrolysers attached to one chromatograph oven. When a control organism was used to derive normalized results, pyrograms were reproducible with a second column and a second pyrolyser, suggesting that inter-laboratory reproducibility may be possible. Five different bacterial genera were well discriminated and some differentiation was achieved between different isolates of Streptococcus mutans, but similarity between pyrograms with was unrelated to orthodox taxonomic grouping. The best discrimination was achieved with Chromosorb 104, followed by Chromosorb 101 and Tenax-GC. With solid phases and isothermal oven temperatures Py-GC is a promising technique for microbial identification.

Bacteria↗
PubMed1981

Respiratory illness in British schoolchildren and atmospheric smoke and sulphur dioxide 1973-7. II: longitudinal findings.

A study was set up to investigate the effects of annual changes in the levels of atmospheric smoke and SO2 on changes in health from 1973 to 1977 in primary schoolchildren from 28 randomly selected areas of England and Scotland. Changes in health were measured by taking the change in number of respiratory conditions reported from one annual examination to the next. The number of areas with data on pollution in each period was 5,9,17, and 14 respectively and within these areas the response rate varied from 65% to 74%. Altogether 857, 1436, 2702, and 2036 children respectively who were of white ethnic origin, aged 6 to 11, and had complete data on sex, social class, and changes in health were studied in each period. In 1973-4 the levels of pollution were highest and showed the greatest decline. The greatest annual mean change in smoke was a decrease from 71.9 to 50.5 microgram/m3 and in SO2 a decrease from 94.2 to 47.6 microgram/m3. However, no relation was found between improvement in health and decreasing levels of pollution. In subsequent years, when the levels of pollution were lower and showed smaller changes, change in health was also unrelated to changes in pollution. Thus no evidence was found to suggest that the levels measured during the study were harmful to health.

Air Pollution↗