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S Perdrizet

Publications and source records attributed to S Perdrizet.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

[Lessons from a long-term survey on the effects of massive occupational exposure to asbestos. The AMISOL affair 10 years later].

For the past 10 years the authors have followed up a cohort of workers who had been massively exposed to dust in an asbestos textile factory which closed down in 1974. They report on the difficulties of all kinds they encountered during this epidemiological survey. The most original result is that they were able to establish that the radiological and functional manifestations of asbestosis pursue their course after the subjects have ceased to be exposed. Another important point is the early development of lesions in peripheral bronchioles, detected by volume-flow loops. The authors insist on the psycho-social problems at the site of work or in daily life which arise from the use of asbestos or of fibres with similar properties. Social protection, at present well organized, should suppress the risk of asbestosis in Western countries. However, a number of problems remain to be solved, notably those concerning the long-term risk of pleural mesothelioma, the mode of action of the fibers and the immune reactions they induce, and the economic and social consequences of a hypothetical ban on asbestos--a material very difficult to replace. This study embodies, in miniature, all the problems of society associated with asbestos during this second half of the XX th century.

Asbestosis↗

[Respiratory pathology in occupational medicine: evaluation of 3 methods of data collection and research on risk factors].

Three methods of gathering data of respiratory symptoms (using a self questionnaire, a detailed interview and a shortened interview) were compared in 4.206 construction workers in different branches of their profession. There was non significant difference between the replies given, in either sex, to the self questionnaire and those given in the detailed interview by employees of the research bureau. The comparison between the long and the short interview, carried out on the painters, plumbers, carpenters and brick-layers did not show any difference for those questions asked in the same manner in the two documents. On the other hand the question relating to intrathoracic wheezing, which was more condensed in the shortened interview, did not have the same degree of affirmative replies. The replies concerning cough and expectoration obtained by the two methods enabled a comparison to be made between prevalance of chronic bronchitis in the different occupations. This pathology was most frequently seen amongst bricklayers and painters. Other factors (nationality, age, smoking habits) were also linked to chronic bronchitis. Taking all these factors into account has not weakened the link between chronic bronchitis and occupation.

Adult↗

[Can the results of pulmonary function tests and evidence of tobacco-related respiratory symptoms be used to dissuade adolescents from smoking?].

The purpose of this paper is to review arguments recently used to dissuade youth from smoking, nd to propose new ones based on the results obtained in an epidemiological study carried out between 1978 and 1980 among young people attending school. A questionnaire focused on respiratory symptoms and smoking habits was filled out by 2,269 students between 10 and 19 years of age. Among them, a representative sample of 971 underwent a respiratory function test. Two years later, the students who had shown an impaired respiratory function were again examined--along with a representative control group--using the same protocol. During the first examination, we had found a very meaningful relationship between smoking and respiratory symptoms. MOreover, girl smokers evidenced significantly diminished expiratory flows. The students were informed of the results at the time. When the second examination was carried out, some smokers had increased their cigarette consumption, while others had cut back- and it was the latter group that, during the first examination, had had a significantly higher proportion of symptoms and lower respiratory function values. This suggests that showing proof of the real problems caused by smoking could be used as an element in antismoking campaigns among school-attending youth.

Adolescent↗

[Validity of mortality data in respiratory diseases in France and 7 other countries of the E.E.C].

A recent study of mortality due to respiratory disease, carried out in the eight member countries of the European Economic Community (E.E.C.) has shown different levels of mortality between the countries. To establish whether these variations in mortality were real or due to methods of filing and coding, a study of death certification was carried out in each country based on 10 common clinical diagnostic categories to assess overall accuracy. In France, 75 doctors picked a random, were asked to fill in a form for each observation as though it were a real death. The cause of death was coded by the usual national centre and re-coded by a reference centre in London. The protocol was similar for each country taking part. Important differences were found between and within each country. Some arise from the way in which doctors write out the death certificates (an excess of deaths from "other disease of the respiratory tract" in France and from cardio-vascular diseases in Italy), in others the way of coding was due to (an "excess of deaths by other disease of the respiratory tract" in Belgium). The degree of concordance depends on the complexity of the case (possible interaction of several pathologies), particular national characteristics, and whether account of these is made by the medical profession. These divergences can in part explain the different mortality statistics from respiratory disease between countries of the E.E.C. Later on it will be necessary to make the wording and the coding of the death certificate more standardised within the E.E.C.

Death Certificates↗

[Assessment of cancer risk in the work environment. Epidemiologic approach].

There are two essential steps in the analysis of carcinogenic risks in the work place: first, a descriptive approach which might raise the suspicion of an agent related to the frequency of a disease or mortality rate and then the analytical approach, based on retrospective and prospective cross-sectional studies. Such studies allow proof of the existence of a relation between a carcinogenic product and the frequency of lung cancer. The richer the contribution of such studies, the more difficult their accomplishment. All these studies assume that certain constraints are accepted: a precise protocol, collection of correct data, choice of a relevant population to be studied and controlled when necessary; rigorous supervision of each cohort under observation in the prospective studies, provision made for distorting factors. Such studies ought to result in averting occupational cancers rather than detecting them when clinically or radiologically apparent.

Adult↗

[Systematic recording of malignant bronchopleuropulmonary tumors: value and limitations].

A systematic recording of primary cancer of the bronchi, pleura or lung would be of descriptive, etiological and operational interest if the collected data were exhaustive, if it were possible to resolve the problems set by epidemiological surveys (the only kind of study to be considered) and finally if an effective means to fight against these cancers were available.

Humans↗

[Evolution of knowledge on the treatment of tuberculosis and therapy prescribed in all new cases of pulmonary tuberculosis in a French community since 1970].

The many papers about the treatment of tuberculosis published during the last fifteen years show the different stages of the evolution of knowledge in this field. The Register of tubercular patients, steadily brought up to date in the French "département" Bas-Rhin, gives interesting information concerning the evolution of treatment in routine. The nature of chemotherapy shows that the newly acquired knowledge is rapidly applied, whereas the average duration of treatment is regularly shortened but is still longer than the duration recommended by researchers. A greater discrepancy appears in hospitalisation: although the efficacy of domiciliary treatment has been known and proved since the early sixties, the proportion of patients having an entirely domiciliary treatment is still low, and in 1978 over 3 patients out of 4 were hospitalized for 4.4 months on average.

Antibiotics, Antitubercular↗

[Tuberculosis in France. Current epidemiologic status and evolution over the last 10 years].

By evaluating the statistics of the cause of death, the current reports of antituberculous clinics and the information gathered from the tuberculosis registers of certain departments, an epidemiological survey in France shows that there were 2,048 deaths due to tuberculosis in 1981 (3.8 per 100,000). The level is steadily falling; these were 8.2/100,000 in 1970. It is the same for morbidity, the incidence of all forms of tuberculosis was 54 0/0000 in 1972 and 26.9 in 1980. In the register in the Bas-Rhin the level fell from 70.5 to 30.4, in the Rhône from 41.6 to 14.4 and in the Hautes Pyrénées from 22.2 (in 1973) to 15.3. In the Bas-Rhin the prevalence has fallen steadily: 233.3 in 1972 to 97.7 in 1979. Foreigners are five times more affected than the French by respiratory forms and 8 times more for extra-respiratory tuberculosis. Those who came from Black Africa are the most affected.

Adolescent↗

[Mortality from respiratory diseases among agricultural and non-agricultural workers in France from 1970 to 1974].

The mortality due to respiratory disease was studied in France between 1970 and 1974 as well as in seven other countries in the European Economic Community. The French results were presented as an index of mortality by cause of death, enabling a comparison of the mortality in different groups of the population. Data was supplied for 7 diagnostic groups defined according to List A of the International Classification of Diseases. The population studied consisted of men and women between 15 to 64 years, classified according to residence (urban or rural) and profession (agricultural worker or not). In addition the indices of mortality for farmers or agricultural employees were compared to men of the same social class, for the same period. The comparisons between the urban and the rural background revealed an excess mortality for respiratory tuberculosis, lung cancer, bronchitis, emphysema and asthma for those in urban areas. In the rural environment an excess mortality was noted for acute respiratory diseases in both men and women; this was also found comparing agricultural to non-agricultural workers. Lastly, if one compared agricultural and non-agricultural workers of the same social class, deaths due to acute and chronic respiratory infections were higher in the agricultural workers. These results show the relative importance already stressed in other studies, of acute respiratory diseases in agricultural workers.

Adult↗

[Etiologic study of chronic nonspecific bronchopneumopathies in the work environment].

Epidemiological methods may be used to study the causes of respiratory troubles at work, to test the hypothesis that there is a statistically significant relationship between professional risk factors and respiratory disease. The prognostic value of certain indices and the impact of preventative measures may also be assessed. The choice of method, type of enquiry and selection of the population to be studied and the resources to be used depend on the aims of the study. The definitions both of occupational exposure and the disease should be clearly established in the protocol. The questionnaire, which is indispensable in all investigation into respiratory disorder, should be adapted to the specific research project (for contents, lay-out, relevance and order of questions, allowing for distorting factors). The final objective in the application of an epidemiological method to study occupational risk factors is to develop a preventative strategy at each stage, but most importantly at the very first stage to prevent the appearance of respiratory troubles.

Air Pollutants, Occupational↗

Prevalence of respiratory symptoms in Parisian teenagers according to smoking habits.

The relationship between respiratory symptoms and smoking habits, according to sex, was studied in 2266 teenagers attending secondary school in Paris. Among smokers, the prevalence of usual cough or phlegm, or both, was higher in girls than in boys, whereas such was not the case among non-smokers. That prevalence, as well as the proportion of people with wheezing, were more closely associated with the total number of cigarettes ever smoked by girls than by boys. Moreover, there was a weak but significant association between the total number of cigarettes smoked and respiratory function--FEV1/Ht3 in girls only.

Adolescent↗

[The results of educational anti-smoking measures at the primary school level (author's transl)].

A retrospective study was made from a self-administered questionnaire distributed to 4,166 pupils aged 15 to 18, attending "Bas-Rhin" high schools, in Spring, 1979. The results demonstrate the relative effectiveness of educational anti-smoking measures when information is given to specific age groups. Information given at the primary school level results in a proportionately and significantly lower number of smokers; there was also a tendency both to smoke fewer cigarettes per day, and to choose brands having lower tar and nicotine levels. These pupils also left a greater portion of the cigarette unsmoked, i.e. they left longer cigarette butts. In addition, the number of pupils who had never smoked was greater in those groups who received information at the primary school level; and the number of ex-smokers (those who had given up smoking for at least one year) was also greater. The results emphasize the effectiveness and importance of public health measures carried out in young children.

Adolescent↗

[Prevalence and aetiology of respiratory symptoms and affections in adolescent school children in French Polynesia (author's transl)].

All the Tahitian school children from 3rd to final grade were questioned by an auto-questionnaire in May 1979. 93% replied to the questions asked (3,870). The prevalence of upper respiratory infections was increased as well as broncho-pulmonary symptoms (cough or other lung disease) during the year under study when compared to a control group in Metropolitan France. This prevalence was significantly increased both in boys and girls who smoked. The incidence of frequent or chronic cough was most increased in the older pupils, boarders, those followed a technical curriculum and belonging to the lower socio-professional categories. Asthma was very frequent at 11.5%, had an equal sex incidence and was not linked to any identifiable factor--the same enquiry was done in the Bas-Rhin department in France 3 years before; Tahitian school children, in general, have double the incidence of respiratory disease that is found in the Bas-Rhin.

Adolescent↗

Smoking and chronic respiratory symptoms: prevalence in male and female smokers.

The relationship between respiratory symptoms and smoking habits, according to sex, was studied in 899 adults (average age 39, 55 per cent male) in a Paris industrial medical center. The relative risk of having chronic bronchitis among smokers, compared to nonsmokers, was higher in females (3.3) than in males (1.6). The prevalence of chronic respiratory symptoms, dyspnoea and wheezing was more closely associated with the number of cigarettes smoked per day in females than in males. No confounding factor was found to be responsible for these results.

Adult↗

[Toxicity of pyrazinamide in antituberculous treatments (author's transl)].

Pyrazinamide, an antituberculous drug discovered in 1952, was first considered as a toxic drug. As it appeared as a bactericidal drug for the organisms inside macrophages, its usefulness has been re-appraised. In combination with other bactericidal drugs, it contributes to speed up the sterilization of tuberculous lesions. A review of the more recent clinical trials allows to assess the real toxicity of Pyrazinamide. Prescribed at a daily dosage of 30 to 35 mg/kg (1,5 to 2 g daily), it gives no major side effects.

Chemical and Drug Induced Liver Injury↗