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Macular hemorrhage after laser in situ keratomileusis for high myopia.

We describe 2 women with high myopia of -12.0 and -18.0 diopters who presented with myopic macular hemorrhages 1 and 4 days, respectively, after being treated by laser in situ keratomileusis (LASIK). One hemorrhage was related to a pre-existing choroidal neovascularization and the other to the presence of lacquer cracks. The hemorrhages resolved but resulted in a permanent decrease in vision. A careful fundus examination should be conducted before performing LASIK in highly myopic patients. In cases of similar macular pathology, fluorescein angiography should be done before LASIK.

Adult↗

Laser in situ keratomileusis to treat myopia: early experience.

PURPOSE: To present our early experience in methodology and results of laser in situ keratomileusis (LASIK) in treating moderate and high myopia. SETTING: Vardinoyannion Eye Institute of Crete and the Cornea and Refractive Surgery Service, Department of Ophthalmology, Heraklion University Hospital, Crete, Greece. METHODS: Forty-three moderately to highly myopic eyes has LASIK. Follow-up was between 12 and 24 months. The Draeger's rotor microkeratome was used to create a 150 microns thick 8.5 x 9.5 mm corneal flap, and the stromal bed was ablated for the myopic correction using the Munnerlynn photorefractive keratectomy algorithm. The preoperative spherical equivalent ranged from -8.50 to -25.87 diopters (D). Attempted correction ranged from 8.00 to 16.00 D. Four eyes developed complications (i.e., anterior chamber perforation and keratoconus, intrastromal epithelial cells, macular lacquer cracks, and transient endothelial decompensation) and were excluded from the study. The remaining 39 eyes were retrospectively divided into two groups--A (21 eyes) and B (18 eyes)--according to the preoperative spherical equivalent (higher or lower than -14.00 D, respectively). RESULTS: Refraction and corneal topography stabilized between 4 and 12 weeks postoperatively. Best spectacle-corrected visual acuity was within one Snellen line in all eyes. At 24 months, 19 eyes (79.2%) were within 2.00 D of intended correction. Attempted correction (12.20 D +/- 2.30 [SD]) was very close to mean achieved correction at 12 and 24 months (11.60 +/- 2.65 D). Mean postoperative astigmatism at 24 months (1.41 +/- 0.87 D; range 0 to 3.50 D) was close to the mean preoperative value (1.52 +/- 1.08 D; range 0 to 4.00 D). An average 2.43% endothelial cell loss was observed at 24 months. CONCLUSION: With limitations, LASIK could be considered as a treatment for moderate and high myopia.

Adult↗

Macular hemorrhage after excimer laser photorefractive keratectomy.

We describe three patients with high myopia, 13.0 to 20.0 diopters (D), who had typical myopic macular hemorrhages 1 to 6 months after photorefractive keratectomy (PRK). The hemorrhages eventually resolved, with resultant permanent decrease in vision and pigmentary and atrophic changes in the macula. Highly myopic eyes are predisposed to bleeding in areas of lacquer cracks and to myopic choroidal neovascularization formation. Awareness of potential retinal pathology in patients having PRK and follow-up retinal examinations are warranted.

Adult↗

Lipid peroxidation stimulated by Solvesso, Bawanol and methanol, and its counteraction by antioxidants in human placental mitochondria.

The influence of some solvents used in the paint and lacquer industry, Solvesso 100, 150 and Bawanol, on the process of lipid peroxidation was evaluated. The interactions of the solvents with methanol and the antioxidative effect of coenzyme Q(10) (CoQ(10)) and vitamin E were also examined. The mitochondria isolated from human placenta were used as a model for investigation. The level of peroxidation was evaluated by malonodialdehyde (MDA) measurement. It was observed that Solvesso 150, Bawanol and methanol caused a statistically significant increase of MDA concentration and that the examined solvents had an antagonistic interaction with methanol. Solvesso 100 does not influence on MDA concentration but gives the same type of interaction with methanol as Solvesso 150. CoQ(10) and vitamin E proved to be effective antioxidants to counteract oxidative stress caused by the studied solvents, lowering lipid peroxidation expressed by MDA concentration.

Antioxidants↗

An updated review of environmental estrogen and androgen mimics and antagonists.

For the last 40 y, substantial evidence has surfaced on the hormone-like effects of environmental chemicals such as pesticides and industrial chemicals in wildlife and humans. The endocrine and reproductive effects of these chemicals are believed to be due to their ability to: (1) mimic the effect of endogenous hormones, (2) antagonize the effect of endogenous hormones, (3) disrupt the synthesis and metabolism of endogenous hormones, and (4) disrupt the synthesis and metabolism of hormone receptors. The discovery of hormone-like activity of these chemicals occurred long after they were released into the environment. Aviation crop dusters handling DDT were found to have reduced sperm counts, and workers at a plant producing the insecticide kepone were reported to have lost their libido, became impotent and had low sperm counts. Subsequently, experiments conducted in lab animals demonstrated unambiguously the estrogenic activity of these pesticides. Man-made compounds used in the manufacture of plastics were accidentally found to be estrogenic because they fouled experiments conducted in laboratories studying natural estrogens. For example, polystyrene tubes released nonylphenol, and polycarbonate flasks released bisphenol-A. Alkylphenols are used in the synthesis of detergents (alkylphenol polyethoxylates) and as antioxidants. These detergents are not estrogenic; however, upon degradation during sewage treatment they may release estrogenic alkylphenols. The surfactant nonoxynol is used as intravaginal spermicide and condom lubricant. When administered to lab animals it is metabolized to free nonylphenol. Bisphenol-A was found to contaminate the contents of canned foods; these tin cans are lined with lacquers such as polycarbonate. Bisphenol-A is also used in dental sealants and composites. We found that this estrogen leaches from the treated teeth into saliva; up to 950 microg of bisphenol-A were retrieved from saliva collected during the first hour after polymerization. Other xenoestrogens recently identified among chemicals used in large volumes are the plastizicers benzylbutylphthalate, dibutylphthalate, the antioxidant butylhydroxyanisole, the rubber additive p-phenylphenol and the disinfectant o-phenylphenol. These compounds act cumulatively. In fact, feminized male fish were found near sewage outlets in several rivers in the U.K.; a mixture of chemicals including alkyl phenols resulting from degradation of detergents during sewage treatment seemed to be the causal agent. Estrogen mimics are just a class of endocrine disruptors. Recent studies identified antiandrogenic activity in environmental chemicals such as vinclozolin, a fungicide, and DDE, and insecticide. Moreover, a single chemical may produce neurotoxic, estrogenic and antiandrogenic effects. It has been hypothesized that endocrine disruptors may play a role in the decrease in the quantity and quality of human semen during the last 50 y, as well as in the increased incidence of testicular cancer and cryptorchidism in males and breast cancer incidence in both females and males in the industrialized word. To explore this hypothesis it is necessary to identify putative causal agents by the systematic screening of environmental chemicals and chemicals present in human foods to assess their ability to disrupt the endocrine system. In addition, it will be necessary to develop methods to measure cumulative exposure to (a) estrogen mimics, (b) antiandrogens, and (c) other disruptors.

Androgen Antagonists↗

Treatment of onychomycosis in the diabetic patient population.

Onychomycosis is a common medical condition in patients with diabetes. Conflicting data exist as to whether diabetes predisposes patients to the disease. Controversy notwithstanding, patients with diabetes have several medical conditions (obesity, peripheral neuropathy, and retinopathy) that can inhibit the identification or mask the progression of fungal nail infections. In addition, vascular insufficiency, impaired wound healing, and compromised immunologic status associated with diabetic foot increase the risk of secondary infections in diabetic patients with onychomycosis. Such factors contribute to an increased morbidity and decreased quality of life in these patients and underscore the need for effective antifungal treatment. Oral antifungal agents are generally well tolerated, but serious adverse events independent of or associated with a number of significant drug interactions have been reported. The availability of a topical therapy, ciclopirox topical solution, 8% (Penlac Nail Lacquer), provides clinicians with an additional effective and well-tolerated treatment option. In order to further increase the efficacy of topical or oral treatment, mechanical intervention (e.g., debridement) may be combined with either of these options. Choice of appropriate treatment and careful monitoring of fungal nail infections can prevent significant morbidity in patients with diabetes.

Antifungal Agents↗

Optimizing photo-embossed gratings: a gradient library approach.

Methodologies for the rapid screening of coating systems were developed and applied to photopolymer lacquers for photoembossing applications. Continuous and discrete gradient libraries were prepared with a gradient in grating period along the short axis and along the long axis, a gradient in exposure energy, development temperature, film thickness, photoinitiator concentration, or monomer to polymer mass ratio. Discrete gradient libraries consisted of arrays of rectangular films made by pipetting a certain amount of sample onto a chemically patterned substrate consisting of hydrophilic patches surrounded by hydrophobic, fluorinated barriers. The shape and height of the photoembossed gratings were measured using an automated AFM. Optimum grating height was obtained for a 20-microm period at intermediate exposure energies, photoinitiator concentrations, or both. Height improves with development temperature (max 110 degrees C), monomer-to-polymer ratio (max 55 wt % monomer), and film thickness. Surface topography can also be optimized, depending on any specific application.

Calorimetry, Differential Scanning↗

High-throughput screening and optimization of photoembossed relief structures.

A methodology for the rapid design, screening, and optimization of coating systems with surface relief structures, using a combination of statistical experimental design, high-throughput experimentation, data mining, and graphical and mathematical optimization routines was developed. The methodology was applied to photopolymers used in photoembossing applications. A library of 72 films was prepared by dispensing a given amount of sample onto a chemically patterned substrate consisting of hydrophilic areas separated by fluorinated hydrophobic barriers. Film composition and film processing conditions were determined using statistical experimental design. The surface topology of the films was characterized by automated AFM. Subsequently, models explaining the dependence of surface topologies on sample composition and processing parameters were developed and used for screening a virtual 4000-membered in silico library of photopolymer lacquers. Simple graphical optimization or Pareto algorithms were subsequently used to find an ensemble of formulations, which were optimal with respect to a predefined set of properties, such as aspect ratio and shape of the relief structures.

Automation↗

Determination of ozone removal rates by selected building products using the FLEC emission cell.

Ozone removal by 16 aged (older than 1-120 months) but unused building products or materials was studied in a test system that included the field and laboratory emission cell (FLEC). The ozone removal was studied at 50 +/- 1 ppb ozone, a relative humidity of 50 +/- 5%, a temperature of 21 +/- 2 degrees C, and an air flow rate of 900 +/- 10 mL min(-1) through the FLEC (air velocity ca. 3 cm s(-1)). The ozone removal increased rapidly during the first 1-2 min and either remained at a constant level or decreased asymptotically to reach a steady state-like value. The ozone removal profiles for a given material showed good repeatability during replicate experiments. Ozone deposition velocities for the building products were calculated to be between 0.0007 cm s(-1) (lacquered ash) and 0.8 cm s(-1) (unpainted gypsum board).

Air Movements↗

New methodology for the determination of phthalate esters, bisphenol A, bisphenol A diglycidyl ether, and nonylphenol in commercial whole milk samples.

This paper reports a new methodology aimed at determining dimethyl phthalate, diethyl phthalate, di-n-butyl phthalate, butylbenzyl phthalate, bis(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate, nonylphenol, bisphenol A, and bisphenol A diglycidyl ether in commercial whole milk. These compounds are used as plastic additives, lacquers, resins, or surfactants and can be found in milk due to contact with plastic materials during food processing and storage. They are all suspected endocrine disrupters or mutagens. A multiresidue method based in solid-phase extraction with C-18 cartridges followed by a cleanup step using disposable cartridges was developed. Detection and quantification were performed by gas chromatography coupled to mass spectrometric (GC-MS) detection using an appropriate surrogate (4-n-nonylphenol) and internal standard [deuterated bis(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate]. Limits of detection were from 0.06 to 0.36 microg/kg and intraday variation from 3 and 27%, with recoveries between 73 and 119%. Five brands of commercial whole milk processed and packed in different ways were analyzed. All samples contained target compounds at concentrations between 0.28 and 85.3 microg/kg, and the total concentration ranged between 79.3 and 187.4 microg/kg, the levels being higher in sterilized milks. Nonylphenol, diethyl phthalate, dibutyl phthalate, and bis(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate were the major contributors.

Animals↗

Case-control study of risk factors for prostate cancer.

One hundred and one patients with histologically confirmed prostate cancer and 202 hospital controls individually matched by age (+/- 2 years), hospital admittance and place of residence, were interviewed during the period 1990-94 in two towns in central Serbia (Yugoslavia). In an analysis using multivariate logistic regression, the followng factors were significantly related to prostate cancer: (1) occupational physical activity during the year preceding the disease [odds ratio (OR)=3.87, 95% confidence interval (95% CI)=2.09-7.16]; (2) occupational exposure to asbestos, steel, dyes and lacquers, bitumen, pitch, iron, nickel, lead, fertilizer and certain other agents (OR=2.13, 95% CI=1.05-4.32); (3) nephrolithiasis (OR=4.52, 95% CI=1.34-15.30); (4) 'other' diseases in medical history such as chronic bronchitis, chronic rheumatic diseases, hypertension, cardiomyopathy, diabetes mellitus, renal diseases, eye diseases and tuberculosis (OR=3.14, 95% CI=1.56-6.33); (5) a greater number (> or = 3) of brothers (OR=2.08, 95% CI=1.35-3.22); and (6) greater numbers (> or = 8) of sexual partners (OR=2.24, 95% CI=1.13-4.44). Marital status, age at first marriage, educational level, age at first sexual intercourse, frequency of sexual intercourse, venereal diseases, tonsillectomy, appendectomy, hernia inguinale and hydrocele, anthropometric characteristics, smoking history, sport and recreational activities and family history of prostatic neoplasms were not found to be independently related to prostate cancer.

Adult↗

Airborne occupational exposure, ABO phenotype, and risk of obesity.

BACKGROUND: We have previously found a quite strong interplay between occupational airborne pollutants, ABO phenotypes, and risk of ischaemic heart disease (IHD), with long-term exposure being associated with a significantly increased risk among men with phenotype O, and not among men with other ABO phenotypes. We suggested that the biological pathway could be a stronger systemic inflammatory response in men with blood group O. Several inflammatory mediators likely to increase the risk of IHD have recently been linked also to obesity, suggesting that long-term exposure to airborne pollutants might play a role in the aetiology of obesity. Accordingly, we tested the hypothesis that long-term occupational exposure to airborne pollutants would be more strongly associated with obesity in men with phenotype O than in men with other ABO phenotypes. DESIGN: Cross-sectional exposure-response study taking into account potential confounders. SETTING: The Copenhagen Male Study. SUBJECTS: A total of 3290 men aged 53-74 y. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE: Prevalence of obesity (BMI > or =30 (kg/m2)). RESULTS: Overall, no differences were found in the prevalence of obesity between men with the O phenotype (n=1399) and men with other phenotypes (n=1891), 8.6 and 9.0%. However, only among men with the O phenotype was long-term occupational exposure (at least 5 y of frequent exposure) to various respirable airborne pollutants: dust, asbestos, soldering fumes, welding fumes, organic solvents, fumes from lacquer, paint or varnish, toxic components, breath irritants, stench or strongly smelling products, and irritants (other than breath irritants or contagious components) associated with an increased prevalence of obesity. Statistically, the strongest univariate associations were found for asbestos exposure, welding fumes, and breath irritants. Odds ratios (95% confidence limits) for these factors were 3.7 (1.8-7.6), 2.7 (1.6-4.4), and 2.6 (1.5-4.4), respectively. This particular relationship of airborne exposures with obesity in men with phenotype O was supported in multivariate analysis including interaction terms and taking into account a number of potential confounders. In contrast, no gene-environment interactions with obesity were found with respect to ABO phenotypes and a number of nonrespirable exposures. CONCLUSION: The finding of a quite strong interplay between long-term exposure to airborne pollutants, ABO phenotypes, and risk of obesity may open up new possibilities for clarifying mechanisms underlying the global obesity epidemic.

ABO Blood-Group System↗

The German Environmental Survey 1990/92 (GerES II): sources of personal exposure to volatile organic compounds.

In the framework of the second German Environmental Survey carried out in the Western part of Germany in 1990/91 (GerES IIa) 113 adults aged 25-69 years were selected at random from the total study population of about 2500 to investigate personal exposure to about 70 volatile organic compounds (VOCs). Each subject wore a diffusive badge-type sampler for 1 week. The VOCs determined included alkanes, aromatics, aliphatic halocarbons, terpenes, and oxygen-containing compounds. Multivariate regression analysis was carried out to determine and quantify the major sources of personal exposure to various VOCs. In this paper, results are given for benzene, and C8- and C9-aromatics. Being subject to environmental tobacco smoke was found to be the most important determinant of benzene exposure, but automobile-related activities such as driving a car or refuelling, were also associated with significantly increased levels of benzene. The major determinant of C8- and C9-aromatics concentrations was occupational exposure. Emissions from paints, lacquers, newspapers, magazines and print-works were also important contributors to C8-aromatics exposure. Renovation, painting and smoking were associated with a significant increase of the exposure to C9-aromatics.

Adult↗

An implementation of the HACCP system in the production of food-packaging material.

The Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point (HACCP) system according to the Codex Alimentarius model was applied to the processes of five paper and paperboard mills and four plants further converting paper or board intended for contact with foodstuffs. The generalised flow diagrams of the processes are presented. Each of the overall processes contained 40-150 process steps. Normally three to five sessions with HACCP teams and additional private negotiations were needed for each mill or plant. Hazards leading to critical control points (CCPs) were microbiological (handling/storage, circulation water, starch, process environment) and physical (process environment) in mills, and microbiological (storage, lacquers or glues, packaging and process environment), chemical (printing) and physical (storage of products, packaging and process environment) in plants. Specifications, critical limits (e.g., based on different kinds of reports and instructions), monitoring methods (microbiological and visual) and frequency, responsibilities and corrective actions of the processes are presented. Most of the improvements focused on improving the process environment. In five cases, hygiene training was included in the implementation of the HACCP system.

Food Packaging↗

Naphthalene contamination of sterilized milk drinks contained in low-density polyethylene bottles. Part 2. Effect of naphthalene vapour in air.

A survey on naphthalene vapour in air was conducted, revealing that the ambient atmosphere contained concentrations of naphthalene in the range of 0.005-0.100 mg m-3. The level of naphthalene vapour in air increased to 0.35 and 4.00 mg m-3 in places exposed to lacquer paint and naphthalene-based moth-repellent, respectively. The effect of naphthalene vapour in air on milk drinks contained in low-density polyethylene (LDPE) bottles was assessed. A mathematical model was suggested to describe the migration of naphthalene from the atmosphere into milk. The model was proved to be valid for milk drinks exposed to naphthalene-based moth-repellent during storage. Moreover, the extent of migration was found to increase with the fat content of foods, which might be ascribed to an increase in diffusion, in addition to the kinetic factor, that affects naphthalene migration.

Air↗

Determination of isocyanic acid in air.

A method is presented for the determination of isocyanic acid (ICA), HNCO, in air samples as a di-n-butylamine (DBA) derivative. The method is based on sampling in midget impinger flasks containing 10 ml of 0.01 mol l-1 DBA in toluene. Quantification was made using liquid chromatography (LC) and electrospray mass spectrometry (MS) monitoring positive ions. The instrumental detection limit for the LC-MS was 10 fmol of ICA-DBA. ICA was generated by thermal decomposition of urea. A standard solution containing the DBA derivatives of ICA was prepared by collecting the emitted ICA in an impinger flask containing DBA. ICA in the reference solution was characterised by LC and time-of-flight (TOF) MS and quantified by LC chemiluminescent nitrogen detection (LC-CLND). The instrumental detection limit for the LC-CLND was 1 ng of nitrogen. ICA was emitted during thermal degradation of PFU resins and polyurethane (PUR) lacquers, from car metal sheets. ICA was the most dominant isocyanate and in PUR coating up to 8% of the total weight was emitted as ICA and for PFU resins up to 14% was emitted as ICA. When air samples were collected in an iron foundry during casting in sand moulds with furan resins, concentrations of ICA in the range 50-700 micrograms m-3 were found in the working atmosphere.

Air Pollutants, Occupational↗

Alkaline transition of phytocyanins: a comparison of stellacyanin and umecyanin.

The effect of pH on Cu(I) and Cu(II) forms of the isolated soluble domain of the stellacyanin from Rhus vernicifera (SCu), the Japanese lacquer tree, has been studied by electronic and NMR spectroscopy and using direct electrochemical measurements. A pK(a) value of 10.1-10.4 is observed for the alkaline transition in this oxidized phytocyanin and results in a slightly altered active-site structure, as indicated by changes in the visible and paramagnetic (1)H NMR spectra. Electrochemical studies show that the pK(a) value for this transition in SCu(I) (reduced SCu) is 11.0. These results are compared with those recently obtained for other phytocyanins, and in particular umecyanin. In all cases, the alkaline transition is caused by the deprotonation of the surface lysine residue adjacent to the axial ligand. This lysine residue is completely conserved in known phytocyanin sequences. Also highlighted in these studies are the remarkable active-site similarities between stellacyanin and umecyanin.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

Action mechanisms of modern antifungal agents and resulting problems in the management of onychomycosis.

Successful treatment of onychomycosis in the infection site depends not only on achieving the minimal inhibitory concentration (MIC) of the antifungal agent, usually determined on fresh, proliferating fungal strains, but also on the effectivity against fungal spores dormant in nail keratin. Ciclopiroxolamine and terbinafine were investigated for their fungicidal properties against proliferating and dormant dermatophyte strains. While ciclopiroxolamine was 100% effective against Trichophyton mentagrophytes (50 microg ml(-1)) and Microsporum canis (5 microg ml(-1)) both in the proliferative and dormant phase after 5 days of incubation, the same result was achieved under identical test conditions with 0.002 microg ml(-1) terbinafine using T. mentagrophytes as test organism in the proliferative and 2.0 microg ml-1 in the dormant phase. The terbinafine concentrations of 0.52 microg g(-1) measured in the nail are well below 2.0. This explains the high treatment failure and relapse rates observed under monotherapy of toenail onychomycosis even with modern antifungals. Consequently, combined therapy is recommended, beginning with atraumatic removal of the affected toenails and continuing with an antifungal nail lacquer combined with a systemic antifungal.

Antifungal Agents↗