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Biomedical subjects

Y Yaffe

Publications and source records attributed to Y Yaffe.

8 recordsLinked to original sources

The role of calcium gluconate in the treatment of hydrofluoric acid eye burn.

Hydrofluoric acid is used for different purposes in industry and in the home as a rust remover. Most exposures are accidental and may result in severe superficial and deep tissue injury as well as systemic toxicity. There is uncertainty regarding the optimal treatment of hydrofluoric acid eye injury. A patient in whom a solution of 49% hydrofluoric acid induced a large corneal erosion is described. Repeated instillation of 1% calcium gluconate eye drops combined with the conventional treatment of acid eye burns resulted in a complete and quick recovery.

Adult

Epidemiological monitoring of environmental lead exposures in California State Hospitals.

Blood lead screening of 8062 state hospital residents in California revealed 143 residents with excessive lead levels (greater than or equal to 30 micrograms/dL). This screening was part of the Childhood Lead Project and was performed in 1978. The purpose of this study was to identify "critical" lead sources in California State Hospitals. Accurate identification is crucial if subsequent abatement programs are to be effective. The strategy involved the following sequence of steps: 1) Selection of cases based on blood lead and erythrocyte protoporphyrin screening. 2) Determination of pica habits and environmental exposures through interviews with ward's staff and/or parents. 3) Measurement of lead levels in environmental samples reflecting exposures. 4) Interpreting these data in order to identify critical lead sources. 5) Reducing exposure to critical lead sources. 6) Following up of cases and controls to validate the effects of this strategy. A group of 36 lead-burdened cases with pica (30-60 micrograms Pb/dL blood) and 36 matched controls (PbB less than 20 micrograms/dL) were selected from among the developmentally disabled residents of two California State Hospitals. These subjects were studied in order to identify the lead sources to which they were exposed and to abate the major ones. Three major lead sources were found in the state hospitals: wall and furniture paints (100-45,400 micrograms Pb/g paint); surface soil (33-570 micrograms Pb/g soil); educational format was presented to all involved staff. The results have indicated a trend towards lower lead intake by the lead-burdened cases. In one of the two hospitals a "lead-free unit" had been established. All the lead-burdened cases were transferred to this unit in August 1981. A few months later the blood lead levels of all the cases dropped below 30 micrograms/dL. Initial epidemiological monitoring indicated where there were preventable hazards, which abatement efforts succeeded in reducing. Further monitoring of such problems is indicated in this and other developmentally-disabled populations.

Adolescent

Asbestos-exposed populations: prevention, care, and compensation.

In Israel, the prevention and care of asbestos-associated diseases with latency periods of one to four decades (asbestosis, mesothelioma, increased frequency of cancer of the lung and other sites) are not satisfactory, and new national policies are required. Such policies have three major goals: (a) elimination or reduction of exposure to asbestos dust; (b) measures to promote cessation or drastic reduction of cigarette smoking among those currently or formerly exposed; and (c) equitable compensation for the consequences of past exposures. The practical elements of a program to achieve these three goals include (a) exposure standards and control technology; (b) identification of sources, routes, and levels of exposure and groups at risk; (c) compensation and job security; (d) medical monitoring and follow-up; (e) smoking cessation; (f) selective substitution of other substances for asbestos; and (g) establishment of a panel for policy supervision and the overseeing of compensation programs. Delay in implementation risks higher death rates for asbestosis and cancer among previously exposed workers, greater exposure among current workers, loss of experienced workers from the work force, and unnecessary hardship for families not adequately compensated.

Adult

[Lead poisoning].

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Adolescent

Lead exposure: effects in Israel.

Blood lead levels and parallel ambient lead exposure levels were studied in selected Israeli population groups. The studies were prompted by newly emerging findings on subtle renal, hematologic and neurobehavioral effects of low levels of exposure to lead in both children and adults. There was a high correlation (r = 0.89) between individual blood lead levels in the groups studied and free erythroprotoporphyrin, a measure of the toxic effect of lead on hemoglobin synthesis. Hemoglobin depression was weakly associated (r = 0.66) with rises in blood lead levels. Blood lead and free erythroprotoporphyrin determinations can be jointly used in screening for lead toxicity and iron deficiency. Our data suggest that the Jerusalem population at large is experiencing lead exposure in the range of rural USA levels, but that in Israel there are several foci of medically significant exposure requiring a comprehensive approach to control of occupational and environmental hazards. Furthermore, children of workers from high-exposure locations may face an additional risk.

Air Pollutants

Identification of lead sources in California children using the stable isotope ratio technique.

Two case studies are presented which apply the lead isotope ratio method to the identification of lead sources in 12 Oakland, California children. One study examined lead sources in 10 children, ages 3 to 15 yr, living together as an extended family in dilapidated housing close to a busy freeway. Eight children had elevated blood lead levels (greater than or equal to 30 micrograms/dl) and 6 children also had elevated erythrocyte protoporphyrin levels (greater than or equal to 50 micrograms/dl). A second case study examined 2-yr-old male twins, both with elevated blood lead and erythrocyte protoporphyrin levels, living in a modest, but well maintained inner city duplex apartment. Paint and surface soil samples collected in and around both households had high lead concentrations. Paint concentrations ranged from 2.9 to 273 mg/g and surface soil concentrations from 0.48 to 7.1 mg/g. The isotopic ratios of lead in the blood of these children were close to the average lead ratios of paints from exterior walls and to the lead ratios of surface soils in adjacent areas where the children played. In both case studies, the data suggest that the lead in the soil was derived mainly from weathering of lead-based exterior paints and that the lead-contaminated soil was a proximate source of lead in the blood of the children.

Adolescent