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Biomedical subjects

S Hernberg

Publications and source records attributed to S Hernberg.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources
PubMed1992

Primary liver cancer and occupational exposure.

In a dynamic population-based case-referent study on primary liver cancer and occupational exposure, the work histories of 344 cases and 861 referents, derived from the follow-up of the whole Finnish population in 1976-1978 and 1981, were analyzed by industry, occupation, and agent. After adjustment for alcohol consumption, elevated odds ratios were found for the categories other agricultural workers (mainly milkmaids), clerical workers, persons exposed to welding fumes and those exposed to other inorganic dusts (mainly silica). One possible explanation for the excess among milkmaids was exposure to dust from cattle feed contaminated with aflatoxins. The excess among clerical workers was probably due to nonoccupational factors or chance because occupational exposure was generally rare. The excesses for welding fumes and inorganic dusts, although compatible with occupational etiology, contradict the results of many previous studies carried out among workers exposed to silica dust and welders.

Agricultural Workers' Diseases↗
PubMed1991

Renal cell cancer and occupational exposure to chemical agents.

A case-referent study of occupational risk indicators of renal cell adenocarcinoma was conducted. Each incident case in Finland in 1977-1978 was matched with two population referents. Lifelong job histories were collected and translated into indicators of industry, occupation, and occupational exposures. The analyses of 338 sets of cases and referents revealed elevated risks for a history of employment in white-collar occupations; the printing industry; the chemical industry; the manufacturing of metal products; mail, telephone, and telegraph services; and iron and metalware work. A decreased risk was observed for male farmers. An elevated risk and an exposure-response relationship were found for gasoline exposure. The excess risk was highest at a latency period of approximately 30 years. The findings support the hypothesis that exposure to some constituent(s) of gasoline increases the incidence of renal adenocarcinoma in humans. Suggestions of elevated risks appeared for exposures to inorganic lead, cadmium, and nonchlorinated solvents.

Adult↗
PubMed1990

Formaldehyde exposure and respiratory cancer among woodworkers--an update.

Respiratory cancer was examined in relation to occupational formaldehyde exposure in a case-referent study (136 cases, 408 referents) nested in a woodworker cohort. Plant- and time-specific job-exposure matrices were constructed for formaldehyde exposure. Over 3 ppm-months of formaldehyde exposure was associated with an odds ratio of 1.4 [90% confidence interval (90% CI) 0.5-4.1]. The odds ratios for lung cancer were near unity, the excess risk concentrating on the upper respiratory tract. That for combined exposure to formaldehyde-phenol exposure (all respiratory cancers) was 1.6 (90% CI 0.6-4.4) but 1.0 for formaldehyde only. No consistent exposure-response patterns emerged for the level, duration, or cumulative exposure. The results are hardly more than debatable support for the hypothesis concerning formaldehyde as a carcinogen in humans, the possible risk seemingly concentrating on the upper respiratory tract rather than the lung.

Case-Control Studies↗
PubMed1988

Increased risk for primary liver cancer among women exposed to solvents.

An earlier case-referent study by the same authors [Int Arch Occup Environ Health 54 (1984) 147-153] reported that solvent-exposed women, but not men, had an increased risk for primary liver cancer. The present study was undertaken to verify these results. The relatives of deceased patients, ie, 377 liver cancer cases, 385 coronary infarction referents, and 476 stomach cancer referents, responded to a questionnaire on past employment and potentially relevant covariables, the response rates being 71.7, 72.7, and 69.0%, respectively. The information was assessed for solvent exposure by two occupational hygienists without knowledge of the patients' diagnoses. Seven male and seven female liver cancer cases had been exposed to solvents, the odds ratio being less than 1 for the men but greater than 3 for the women irrespective of the reference group used for comparison. The results confirm the authors' earlier findings. When both materials were combined, the odds ratio was 7.8 for the female liver cancer cases as compared with the infarction referents. In the combined material, nine female liver cancer cases, two stomach cancer referents, but no infarction referent had had at least probable exposure to chlorinated hydrocarbons. Such exposure was rare among all of the men in the study. This finding may explain why the increased liver cancer risk occurred only for the women, although a sex difference in sensitivity cannot be completely ruled out.

Adult↗
PubMed1985

Effects of intervention on the cardiovascular mortality of workers exposed to carbon disulphide: a 15 year follow up.

The cardiovascular mortality of a cohort of 343 Finnish men exposed for at least five years to carbon disulphide (CS2) in a viscose rayon plant has been monitored prospectively from 1967 to 1982. The results from the first five years of follow up in 1972 showed a 4.7-fold excess mortality for ischaemic and other heart diseases (ICD A83-A84) compared with a comparable reference cohort of paper mill workers. After 1972 a preventive intervention programme instituted at the rayon plant included removing all workers with coronary risk factors from exposure. Thus only 19% of the exposed cohort continued to be exposed in 1977 compared with 53% in 1972. Moreover, exposure levels were reduced after 1972 in compliance with the set hygienic standard of 10 ppm. These measures were reflected in a normalisation of the risk of cardiovascular death; the relative risk was 1.0 in the period after the intervention (1 July 1974 to 30 June 1982), whereas it had previously been 3.2 (from 1 July 1972 to 30 June 1974). The risk of a fatal heart attack remained at 11.6% throughout the 15 year follow up period (95% confidence limits 8.5%-15.4%) among the exposed compared with 7.8% (5.3%-11.2%) among the unexposed. The entire risk difference of 3.8% was accumulated during the first seven years of follow up. Thus we can estimate that 59 CS2-related cardiovascular deaths would have occurred during the next eight years (instead of the actual 19 deaths) had there been no preventive action. Calculations yielded a preventive fraction of 68%.

Carbon Disulfide↗
PubMed1985

Formaldehyde exposure and respiratory and related cancers. A case-referent study among Finnish woodworkers.

A case-referent study was undertaken to investigate the associations between formaldehyde exposure and respiratory and related cancers. Fifty-seven such cancers from a retrospective cohort of male woodworkers formed the case group. They were matched by year of birth with 171 referents. Exposure to formaldehyde was assessed with job-exposure matrices. The median of the time-weighted average concentration was about 1 ppm, and the mean duration of exposure was 10 years among the exposed. Odds ratios (OR) were calculated for formaldehyde exposure (1.44), peak exposure to formaldehyde (1.26), and exposure to formaldehyde-containing wood dust (1.22). None of the values exceeded unity with statistical significance. Allowance was also made for a 10-year period from the onset of exposure. Birth year, cigarette smoking and exposure to wood dust, chlorophenols, pesticides, and terpenes were controlled by stratification. The adjusted ORs did not change appreciably. The highest OR was 1.95 for formaldehyde exposure without allowance for minimum latency, adjusted for exposure to terpenes. No exposure-response relation was observed for the level, duration, or dose (ppm-years) of formaldehyde exposure. The result is nonpositive and may be explained by absence of effect, by too short a follow-up, or by insufficient power for detecting a mild excess risk.

Adult↗
PubMed1984

Primary liver cancer and exposure to solvents.

A case-referent study was done on the possible association between primary liver cancer (ICD 155.0) and occupational exposures. In all, 374 cases were reported to the Finnish Cancer Registry in 1979 and 1980. After the exclusion of wrong diagnoses, nonrespondents and cases for whom the primary site was uncertain, 126 cases (64 men and 62 women) remained. Each case was matched for sex, age (+/- 5 years), vital status and geographical district with two cases of coronary infarction selected from hospital records without any knowledge of occupational history. Nonrespondence (38%) reduced the number to 175 referents (82 men and 92 women). A questionnaire on former employment and tasks was mailed to living subjects (6 + 6) and to the next of kin of deceased patients. An industrial hygienist then evaluated the exposure history blindly and, whenever necessary, contacted the workplace or the next of kin for more details. Only exposures commencing 10 years or more before diagnosis were considered. Altogether six female cases but no referent had been exposed to solvents. One had been exposed to chlorinated solvents in dry cleaning and two others had used both carbon tetrachloride and aromatic and aliphatic solvents. Three cases had been exposed to mixtures of aliphatic and aromatic solvents, but not chlorinated hydrocarbons. By contrast, the men did not differ with regard to exposure to solvents. Two cases and five referents were classified as having been exposed to solvent mixtures. The present results are hypothesis generating only, and the excess solvent exposure found for women must be confirmed in other studies before any conclusions can be drawn.

Adult↗
PubMed1984

Work-related diseases--some problems in study design.

Methodological problems in the epidemiologic study of work-related diseases are addressed. Because the occupational etiologic fraction of work-related diseases is small, its demonstration is often difficult. Especially cross-sectional studies are hampered by diluting effects, such as selection out of an exposed job. The problems involved in the study of four disease groups, ie, chronic nonspecific respiratory disease, musculoskeletal disorders, cardiovascular diseases, and behavioral responses and psychosomatic symptomatology are discussed in some detail.

Bone Diseases↗
PubMed1984

A prospective follow-up study on psychological effects in workers exposed to low levels of lead.

A prospective follow-up study on new lead workers who began work at a storage battery factory was carried out between 1975 and 1981. Psychological performances (eg, intelligence, memory, visuomotor functions, vigilance, and personality) were assessed before the commencement of exposure and after one, two, and four years of work. Of an initial number of 89 workers, 24 were available for the one-year, 16 for the two-year, and 11 for the four-year reexamination. The time-weighted average blood lead values ranged between 0.68 and 2.17 mumol/l (14 and 45 micrograms/100 ml, respectively). A reference group, nonexposed workers in a cable manufacturing plant and an electrical power plant, was similarly followed. Initially the average psychological performances were similar among the lead workers and the referents. For some of the psychological tests learning effect, which was clearly evident among the referents during the follow-up, was almost absent among the lead workers. The lead worker's visual intelligence and visuomotor functions in particular were impaired significantly after the first two years of follow-up. When the lead workers were divided into two groups according to the median time-weighted average of the blood lead values (1.30 mumol/l), the Block Design and the Santa Ana coordination tests were those which best separated the subgroups. Although the impairment of the lead workers' performance was rather slight and the dispersion in the psychological changes was wide, it was evident that some higher nervous functions were affected by lead levels above about 1.45 mumol/l.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1984

A prospective study on early neurotoxic effects of lead.

A prospective follow-up study on new lead workers who entered a storage battery factory was carried out between 1975 and 1981. Nerve conduction velocities and psychological performance were recorded before the commencement of exposure and after one, two, and four years of work, respectively. Out of an initial number of 89 workers, 23 were available for the 1-year, 16 for the 2-year and 11 for the 4-year re-examination. The reference group comprised non-exposed workers of a cable manufacturing plant and an electrical power plant. Especially the sensory conduction velocities of the median nerve decreased during the 2-year follow-up. When divided into two groups according to the median Pb-B values (27-30 micrograms/100 ml), the higher exposure group showed slower values for several motor and sensory conduction velocities at the 1- and 2-year examination as compared with the lower group. Also visual intelligence and visuomotor functions had impaired significantly. The learning effect for some psychological tests which was clearly evident among the referents, was almost absent among the lead workers. After four years only 11 lead workers remained. This together with selection in the drop-out, resulted in that the group differences found for conduction velocities and psychological tests did not reach statistical significance anymore.

Adult↗
PubMed1984

Congenital malformations, mortality and styrene exposure.

The prevalence of congenital malformations among children born to styrene-exposed male and female workers, as well as the mortality of the exposed workers, was studied. A cohort of 2,209 workers (1,698 men, 511 women) was selected from the personnel files of 160 workplaces using styrene in the manufacture of reinforced plastic products. The earliest exposure histories began in 1960, but the majority of workers had been exposed after 1967. The data on children born to the exposed workers were linked with those of the Register of Congenital Malformations. The number of malformations of children born to the workers was, both before and during the styrene exposure, below the expected values. In the cohort there were 37 observed deaths (expected 74.0), six of which were due to cancer (expected 13.0). The cancer sites were the stomach (2 cases), bronchus (1), breast (1), ovary (1), and kidney (1 case). There were no cases of lymphatic or haematopoietic cancer. Most of the cancers appeared after short exposure times and soon after the commencement of exposure.

Abnormalities, Drug-Induced↗
PubMed1983

Nasal and sinonasal cancer. Connection with occupational exposures in Denmark, Finland and Sweden.

A joint Danish-Finnish-Swedish case-referent investigation was initiated in 1977 in order to study the connection between nasal and sinonasal cancer and various occupational exposures. All new cases of nasal and sinonasal cancer were collected from the national cancer registers (Finland and Sweden) or from the hospitals (Denmark). Those still alive who agreed to an interview (N = 167) were individually matched for age and sex with patients with colonic or rectal cancer. A detailed telephone interview was made according to standardized forms. Both cases and referents thought that their condition was the one under study. The exposures were coded blindly by an industrial hygienist. The results showed associations between nasal and sinonasal cancer and exposure to (i) hardwood or mixed wood dust (discordant pairs 14: 2), (ii) softwood dust alone (13:4), (iii) chromium (16: 6), (iv) nickel (12: 5, not significant), (v) welding, flame-cutting and soldering (17: 6), and (vi) lacquers and paints (14: 0). The last finding was probably due to confounding from wood dust exposure. Hardwood dust exposure was associated with adenocarcinoma. Softwood dust exposure alone was associated with epidermoid and anaplastic carcinomas. No associations were found for a number of exposures, including agricultural chemicals, textile dust, asbestos, quartz dust, organic solvents and leather work. Possible exposure to formaldehyde was evenly distributed between the cases and referents.

Adenocarcinoma↗