RESUMO
At city level, personal monitoring is the best way to assess people's exposure. However, it is usually estimated from a few monitoring stations. Our aim was to determine the exposure to black carbon (BC) and BC dose for 45 schoolchildren with portable microaethalometers and to evaluate the relationship between personal monitoring and fixed stations at schools (indoor and outdoor) and in an urban background (UB) site. Personal BC concentra-tions were 20% higher than in fixed stations at schools. Linear mixed-effect models showed low R(2) between personal measurements and fixed stations at schools (R(2) ≤ 0.28), increasing to R(2) ≥ 0.70 if considering only periods when children were at schools. For the UB station, the respective R(2) were 0.18 and 0.45, indicating the importance of the distance to the monitoring station when assessing exposure. During the warm season, the fixed stations agreed better with personal measurements than during the cold one. Children spent 6% of their time on commuting but received 20% of their daily BC dose, due to co-occurrence with road traffic rush hours and the close proximity to the source. Children received 37% of their daily-integrated BC dose at school. Indoor environments (classroom and home) were responsible for the 56% BC dose.
Assuntos
Poluentes Atmosféricos/análise , Exposição Ambiental/análise , Monitoramento Ambiental/instrumentação , Fuligem/análise , Análise Espaço-Temporal , Poluição do Ar em Ambientes Fechados/análise , Criança , Cidades , Monitoramento Ambiental/métodos , Feminino , Humanos , Modelos Lineares , Masculino , Reprodutibilidade dos Testes , Instituições Acadêmicas , Espanha , Emissões de Veículos/análiseRESUMO
Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection is frequent among patients with alcohol use disorders. We aimed to analyse the impact of HCV infection on survival of patients seeking treatment for alcohol use. This was a longitudinal study in a cohort of patients who abused alcohol recruited in two detoxification units. Socio-demographic and alcohol use characteristics, liver function tests for the assessment of alcohol-related liver disease and HCV and HIV infection serologies were obtained at admission. Patients were followed until December 2008; causes of death were ascertained through clinical records and death registry. Cox models were used to analyse predictors of death. A total of 675 patients (79.7% men) were admitted; age at admission was 43.5 years (IQR: 37.9-50.2 years), duration of alcohol abuse was 18 years (IQR: 11-24 years), and median alcohol consumption was 200 g/day (IQR: 120-275 g/day). Distribution of patients according to viral infections was as follows: 75.7% without HCV or HIV infection, 14.7% HCV infection alone and 8.1% HCV/HIV coinfection. Median follow-up was 3.1 years (IQR: 1.5-5.1 years) accounting for 2,345 person-years. At the end of study, 78 patients (11.4%) had died. In the multivariate analysis, age at admission (HR = 1.71, 95%CI: 1.05-2.80), alcohol-related liver disease (HR = 3.55, 95%CI: 1.93-6.53) and HCV/HIV co-infection (HR = 3.86 95%CI: 2.10-7.11) were predictors of death. Younger patients (≤43 years) with HCV infection were more likely to die than those without viral infections (HR = 3.1, 95%CI: 1.3-7.3; P = 0.007). Among patients with alcohol-related liver disease, mortality rate was high, irrespective of viral infections. These data show that HCV infection confers a worse prognosis in patients with alcohol use disorders.
Assuntos
Alcoolismo/complicações , Alcoolismo/mortalidade , Hepatite C/complicações , Hepatite C/mortalidade , Adulto , Estudos de Coortes , Comorbidade , Feminino , Humanos , Estudos Longitudinais , Masculino , Pessoa de Meia-Idade , Medição de Risco , Análise de SobrevidaRESUMO
The present work is part of the INMA (INfancia y Medio Ambiente -'Environment and Childhood') project, which aims at assessing the adverse effects of exposure to air pollution during pregnancy and early in life. The present study was performed in the city of Sabadell (Northeast Spain) at three sampling sites covering different traffic characteristics, during two times of the year. It assesses time and spatial variations of PM(2.5) concentrations, chemical components and source contributions, as well as gaseous pollutants. Furthermore, a cross-correlation analysis of PM components and source contributions with gaseous pollutants used as a proxy for exposure assessment is carried out. Our data show the influence of traffic emissions in the Sabadell area. The main PM sources identified by Positive Matrix Factorisation (PMF) were similar between the two seasons: mineral source (traffic-induced resuspension, demolition/construction and natural background), secondary sulphate (higher in summer), secondary nitrate (only during winter), industrial, and road traffic, which was the main contributor to PM(2.5) at two of the sites. The correlation of concentrations of nitrogen oxides was especially strong with those of elemental carbon (EC). The relatively weaker correlations with organic carbon (OC) in summer are attributed to the variable formation of secondary OC. Strong correlations between concentration of nitrogen oxides and PM(2.5) road traffic contributions obtained from source apportionment analysis were seen at all sites. Therefore, under the studied urban environment, nitrogen oxides can be used as a proxy for the exposure to road traffic contribution to PM(2.5); the use of NO(x) concentrations being preferred, with NO and NO(2) as second and third options, respectively.
Assuntos
Poluentes Atmosféricos/análise , Óxidos de Nitrogênio/análise , Material Particulado/análise , Poluição do Ar/estatística & dados numéricos , Cidades , Monitoramento Ambiental , Estações do Ano , Espanha , Emissões de Veículos/análiseRESUMO
While exposure to traffic pollutants significantly decreases with distance from the curb, very dense urban architectures hamper such dispersion. Moreover, the building height reduces significantly the dispersion of pollutants. We have investigated the horizontal variability of Black Carbon (BC) and the vertical variability of NO2 and BC within the urban blocks. Increasing the distance from road BC concentrations decreased following an exponential curve reaching halving distances at 25â¯m (median), although with a wide variability among sites. Street canyons showed sharper fall-offs than open roads or roads next to a park. Urban background concentrations were achieved at 67â¯m distance on average, with higher distances found for more trafficked roads. Vertical fall-off of BC was less pronounced than the horizontal one since pollutants homogenize quickly vertically after rush traffic hours. Even shallower vertical fall-offs were found for NO2. For both pollutants, background concentrations were never reached within the building height. A street canyon effect was also found exacerbating concentrations at the lowest floors of the leeward side of the road. These inputs can be useful for assessing population exposure, air quality policies, urban planning and for models validation.
RESUMO
Schools represent a critical microenvironment in terms of air quality due to the proximity to outdoor particle sources and the frequent lack of proper ventilation and filtering systems. Moreover, the population exposed in schools (i.e. children) represents a susceptible population due to their age. Air quality-based studies involving students' exposure at schools are still scarce and often limited to mass-based particle metrics and may thus underestimate the possible effect of sub-micron particles and particle toxicity. To this purpose, the present paper aims to evaluate the exposure to different airborne particle metrics (including both sub- and super-micron particles) and attached carcinogenic compounds. Measurements in terms of particle number, lung-deposited surface area, and PM fraction concentrations were measured inside and outside schools in Barcelona (Spain) and Cassino (Italy). Simultaneously, PM samples were collected and chemically analysed to obtain mass fractions of carcinogenic compounds. School time airborne particle doses received by students in classrooms were evaluated as well as their excess lung cancer risk due to a five-year primary school period. Median surface area dose received by students during school time in Barcelona and Cassino resulted equal to 110mm2 and 303mm2, respectively. The risk related to the five-year primary school period was estimated as about 2.9×10-5 and 1.4×10-4 for students of Barcelona and Cassino, respectively. The risk in Barcelona is slightly higher with respect to the maximum tolerable value (10-5, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency), mainly due to toxic compounds on particles generated from anthropogenic emissions (mainly industry). On the other hand, the excess lung cancer risk in Cassino is cause of concern, being one order of magnitude higher than the above-mentioned threshold value due to the presence of biomass burning heating systems and winter thermal inversion that cause larger doses and great amount of toxic compounds on particles.
Assuntos
Poluição do Ar em Ambientes Fechados/estatística & dados numéricos , Exposição Ambiental/estatística & dados numéricos , Neoplasias Pulmonares/epidemiologia , Material Particulado/análise , Poluentes Atmosféricos/análise , Poluição do Ar , Criança , Europa (Continente) , Humanos , Itália/epidemiologia , Instituições Acadêmicas , Espanha/epidemiologiaRESUMO
Recent research indicates that airborne copper exposure in scholar children negatively affects brain functioning. These effects are likely to be influenced by the efficiency of copper metabolism, which is partly regulated by the ATPase copper transporting beta (ATP7B) gene. We investigated whether indoor and outdoor airborne copper exposure is differentially associated with child inattentiveness depending on genetic variation within the ATP7B gene in 1645 scholar children from the BREATHE project. Outdoor (courtyard) and indoor (classroom) air pollution levels were measured during class hours in each school. Inattentiveness was assessed through a follow-up with four measurements via the Attentional Network Test (4475 observations). Linear mixed models considering repeated measures were conducted to assess genetic and exposure main and interaction effects. Two interactions were detected indicating that ATP7B-rs1061472 (P for interaction 0.016) and ATP7B-rs1801243 (P for interaction 0.003) polymorphisms modified the association between indoor copper exposure and inattentiveness. Stratified analysis by genotypes revealed that both outdoor and indoor copper exposure increased inattentiveness in rs1061472-CC and rs1801243-CC carriers. These findings suggest that the genetic background promotes the association between airborne copper exposure at school with inattentiveness in children.
Assuntos
Adenosina Trifosfatases/genética , Poluentes Atmosféricos/análise , Atenção , Proteínas de Transporte de Cátions/genética , Cobre/análise , Instituições Acadêmicas , Poluição do Ar em Ambientes Fechados/análise , Criança , Cognição , ATPases Transportadoras de Cobre , Monitoramento Ambiental , Feminino , Genótipo , Humanos , Masculino , Polimorfismo de Nucleotídeo ÚnicoRESUMO
Chlorosis is one of the symptoms of bacterial spot disease caused by Xanthomonas campestris pv. vesicatoria, which induces chlorosis before any other symptoms appear on tomato. We report characterization of a 2.1-kb gene called early chlorosis factor (ecf). The gene ecf encodes a hydrophobic protein with similarity to four other proteins in plant pathogens, including HolPsyAE, and uncharacterized gene products from X. campestris pv. campestris and X. axonopodis pv. citri, and, at the tertiary structure level, to colicin Ia from Escherichia coli. We demonstrate that the associated phenotype is hrp dependent, and that the ecf gene product appears to be translocated to host cells. The gene ecf has no impact on electrolyte leakage or on bacterial growth in planta in response to infection. Concentrated culture filtrates do not produce chlorosis. Study of its role in Xanthomonas spp.-tomato interactions will forward our understanding of symptom production by plant pathogens and allows further investigation into the mechanisms of bacterial virulence and production of symptoms.
Assuntos
Genes Bacterianos , Xanthomonas vesicatoria/genética , Sequência de Aminoácidos , Mapeamento Cromossômico , Solanum lycopersicum/microbiologia , Dados de Sequência Molecular , Doenças das Plantas/microbiologia , Folhas de Planta/microbiologia , Fatores de TempoRESUMO
BACKGROUND: Microtia is a malformation of the ear with extreme variability of expression. It is generally seen as an isolated malformation. However, some authors consider it to be a minimal manifestation of the oculo-auriculo-vertebral spectrum (OAVS), where, in addition, there are facial, vertebral, and renal abnormalities, among others. METHODS: A total of 145 pediatric patients with unilateral or bilateral microtia not considered as part of a syndrome were studied. All patients were subjected to an intentional clinical examination, a familial history, and radiographic imaging studies for ruling out associated malformations. Patients were classified into two groups: group 1 (60%), with isolated microtia; and group 2 (40%), considered as OAVS, with microtia associated with hemifacial skeletal microsomia, vertebral and/or renal malformations. RESULTS: No significant differences were found between the groups when the following variables were compared: gender; presence of unilateral or bilateral microtia; atretic external auditory canal; presence of preauricular tags; hearing loss of any type, and affection of the seventh cranial nerve, as well as associated malformations of other organs or systems. There were significant differences in relation to the presence of soft-tissue hemifacial microsomia, more frequently seen in patients with OAVS, because the majority of these patients had bone microsomia. Over 66% of the cases were sporadic and the rest were familiar. In 28.3% of the cases, the history suggested an autosomal-dominant inheritance pattern, and in 5.5%, an autosomal-recessive inheritance pattern, although in some familial cases, multifactorial inheritance could not be ignored. Some members in several families had isolated microtia, and others had mild characteristic manifestations of OAVS. CONCLUSIONS: Our results support the hypothesis that isolated microtia is a minimal expression of OAVS. Therefore, it is recommended that patients with microtia be subjected to intentional studies that search for malformations and physical examinations of first-degree relatives for adequate genetic counseling and management.
Assuntos
Orelha/anormalidades , Adolescente , Criança , Pré-Escolar , Anormalidades Congênitas/epidemiologia , Feminino , Síndrome de Goldenhar/epidemiologia , Síndrome de Goldenhar/genética , Síndrome de Goldenhar/patologia , Órgãos Governamentais , Humanos , Lactente , Masculino , México/epidemiologia , Pediatria , LinhagemRESUMO
INTRODUCTION: Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a neurobehavioural disorder whose essential characteristic is a persistent pattern of inattention or hyperactivity and impulsiveness. Recent studies into prevalence carried out on the Antioquian population by our group found an overall prevalence of 15.8%, which confirms ADHD as one of the most frequent problems in infancy. The cause of this disorder is still not altogether clear; familial aggregation of ADHD points towards a genetic component. Although to date no model of inheritance has been defined, its high prevalence rate, the difficulties involved in its diagnosis and its effects on the cognitive functions, as well as the social and educational repercussions, make this disorder a problem in children's public health. AIMS: Our aim was to carry out power simulations to detect genetic linkage. PATIENTS AND METHODS: The Slink programme, which is part of Linkage package, was used in six families from the city of Medellín Antioquia, which is a region where a founding effect is likely to have taken place; this makes it a strategic zone for genetic linkage studies in complex diseases such as ADHD. RESULTS: Assuming the population to be homogenous, the lod score (Z) is greater than 3 (Z>3) and individual lod score values of between 0 and 6 were obtained for each family. CONCLUSIONS: In this paper we discuss the benefits of having multigenerational families, in Antioquia, to conduct gene mapping studies and we examine the different strategies to be developed with the findings reported here.
Assuntos
Transtorno do Deficit de Atenção com Hiperatividade/genética , Ligação Genética , Transtorno do Deficit de Atenção com Hiperatividade/epidemiologia , Colômbia/epidemiologia , Humanos , Lactente , Escore Lod , Modelos Genéticos , LinhagemRESUMO
Proximity to road traffic involves higher health risks because of atmospheric pollutants. In addition to outdoor air, indoor air quality contributes to overall exposure. In the framework of the BREATHE study, indoor and outdoor air pollution was assessed in 39 schools in Barcelona. The study quantifies indoor and outdoor air quality during school hours of the BREATHE schools. High levels of fine particles (PM2.5), nitrogen dioxide (NO2), equivalent black carbon (EBC), ultrafine particle (UFP) number concentration and road traffic related trace metals were detected in school playgrounds and indoor environments. PM2.5 almost doubled (factor of 1.7) the usual urban background (UB) levels reported for Barcelona owing to high school-sourced PM2.5 contributions: [1] an indoor-generated source characterised mainly by organic carbon (OC) from organic textile fibres, cooking and other organic emissions, and by calcium and strontium (chalk dust) and; [2] mineral elements from sand-filled playgrounds, detected both indoors and outdoors. The levels of mineral elements are unusually high in PM2.5 because of the breakdown of mineral particles during playground activities. Moreover, anthropogenic PM components (such as OC and arsenic) are dry/wet deposited in this mineral matter. Therefore, PM2.5 cannot be considered a good tracer of traffic emissions in schools despite being influenced by them. On the other hand, outdoor NO2, EBC, UFP, and antimony appear to be good indicators of traffic emissions. The concentrations of NO2 are 1.2 times higher at schools than UB, suggesting the proximity of some schools to road traffic. Indoor levels of these traffic-sourced pollutants are very similar to those detected outdoors, indicating easy penetration of atmospheric pollutants. Spatial variation shows higher levels of EBC, NO2, UFP and, partially, PM2.5 in schools in the centre than in the outskirts of Barcelona, highlighting the influence of traffic emissions. Mean child exposure to pollutants in schools in Barcelona attains intermediate levels between UB and traffic stations.
Assuntos
Poluentes Atmosféricos/efeitos adversos , Poluição do Ar em Ambientes Fechados/efeitos adversos , Exposição Ambiental , Monitoramento Ambiental/estatística & dados numéricos , Poluentes Atmosféricos/análise , Poluição do Ar em Ambientes Fechados/análise , Carbonato de Cálcio/análise , Criança , Humanos , Pulmão/química , Metais Pesados/efeitos adversos , Metais Pesados/análise , Dióxido de Nitrogênio/efeitos adversos , Dióxido de Nitrogênio/análise , Material Particulado/efeitos adversos , Material Particulado/análise , Instituições Acadêmicas , EspanhaRESUMO
Indoor and outdoor measurements of real-time ultrafine particles (UFP; N10-700 in this study) number concentration and average diameter were collected twice at 39 primary schools located in Barcelona (Spain), with classrooms naturally ventilated under warm weather conditions. Simultaneous outdoor N concentration measurements at schools under different traffic exposures showed the important role of this source, with higher levels by 40% on average at schools near heavy traffic, highlighting thus the increased exposure of children due to urban planning decisions. A well-defined spatial pattern of outdoor UFP levels was observed. Midday increases in outdoor N levels mainly attributed to nucleation processes have been recorded both at high and low temperatures in several of the outdoor school sites (increasing levels by 15%-70%). The variation of these increases also followed a characteristic spatial pattern, pointing at schools' location as a key variable in terms of UFP load owing to the important contribution of traffic emissions. Indoor N concentrations were to some extent explained by outdoor N concentrations during school hours, together with average temperatures, related with natural ventilation. Outdoor midday increases were generally mimicked by indoor N concentrations, especially under warm temperatures. At specific cases, indoor concentrations during midday were 30%-40% higher than outdoor. The time scale of these observations evidenced the possible role of: a) secondary particle formation enhanced by indoor precursors or conditions, maybe related with surface chemistry reactions mediated by O3, and/or b) UFP from cooking activities. Significant indoor N increases were detected after school hours, probably associated with cleaning activities, resulting in indoor N concentrations up to 3 times higher than those in outdoor. A wide variability of indoor/outdoor ratios of N concentrations and mean UFP sizes was detected among schools and measurement periods, which seems to be partly associated with climatic conditions and O3 levels, although further research is required.
Assuntos
Poluentes Atmosféricos/análise , Poluição do Ar em Ambientes Fechados/análise , Monitoramento Ambiental , Material Particulado/análise , Instituições Acadêmicas , Espanha , VentilaçãoRESUMO
Children spend a third of their day in the classroom, where air pollution levels may differ substantially from those outdoors due to specific indoor sources. Air pollution exposure assessments based on atmospheric particle mass measured outdoors may therefore have little to do with the daily PM dose received by school children. This study aims to investigate outdoor and indoor sources of PM2.5 measured at 39 primary schools in Barcelona during 2012. On average 47% of indoor PM2.5 measured concentrations was found to be generated indoors due to continuous resuspension of soil particles (13%) and a mixed source (34%) comprising organic (skin flakes, clothes fibers, possible condensation of VOCs) and Ca-rich particles (from chalk and building deterioration). Emissions from seven outdoor sources penetrated easily indoors being responsible for the remaining 53% of measured PM2.5 indoors. Unpaved playgrounds were found to increase mineral contributions in classrooms by 5-6 µg/m(3) on average with respect to schools with paved playgrounds. Weekday traffic contributions varied considerably across Barcelona within ranges of 1-14 µg/m(3) outdoor and 1-10 µg/m(3) indoor. Indoors, traffic contributions were significantly higher (more than twofold) for classrooms with windows oriented directly to the street, rather than to the interior of the block or to playgrounds. This highlights the importance of urban planning in order to reduce children's exposure to traffic emissions.
Assuntos
Poluentes Atmosféricos/análise , Poluição do Ar em Ambientes Fechados/análise , Monitoramento Ambiental , Material Particulado/análise , Instituições AcadêmicasRESUMO
Incontinentia pigmenti (IP) is a rare neurocutaneous disorder with a frequency of 1 in 50,000 newborn, and is associated with mutations in IKBKG gene (NEMO) in Xq28, inherited as an X-linked dominant trait. Clinical manifestations detected since the newborn period are highly variable, with 3 well established sequential or overlapped states and each with a characteristic differential diagnosis. With PCR+RFLPs, we analyzed the IKBKG gene in 4 patients with different clinical manifestations and characteristic skin biopsy. In all 4 patients the same deletion of exons 4 to 10 was identified. In female patients in whom the dermatological lesions lead to the suspicion of an IP diagnosis, it is important to have the complete, multidisciplinary and molecular analysis of their first level female relatives. This should give us a clear diagnosis, which is the first step to complete genetic counselling.
Assuntos
Incontinência Pigmentar/diagnóstico , Adolescente , Criança , Feminino , Humanos , Incontinência Pigmentar/genética , Lactente , Linhagem , FenótipoRESUMO
INTRODUCTION: A mesomelic dysplasia with shortened limbs was first described by Leri and Weill in 1929. Since then the causal gene has been known as SHOX (short stature homeobox) gene, located in Xp22 and Yp11.3, with mutations being identified in between 56% and 100% of the patients. PATIENTS AND METHODS: One of the observations is familial and the other is an isolated case. The diagnosis in both cases was clinical, supported by radiology and a molecular study of the SHOX gene using multiplex ligation-dependent probe amplification (MLPA). CONCLUSIONS: Knowledge of this condition has therapeutic implications, given the favourable progress with growth hormone treatment, as well as possible surgical procedures and genetic counselling, due to its autosomal dominant hereditary character.
Assuntos
Transtornos do Crescimento/genética , Proteínas de Homeodomínio/genética , Mutação , Osteocondrodisplasias/genética , Adolescente , Feminino , Regulação da Expressão Gênica , Humanos , Masculino , Proteína de Homoeobox de Baixa EstaturaRESUMO
In vitro tests have been developed for the diagnosis of tuberculosis (TB) infection. The objective was to analyse latent TB infection in drug and alcohol abusers through two interferon-gamma techniques. One hundred and thirty-nine patients were admitted between February 2006 and May 2007. Mean age was 39.8 years [31% HIV positive]. The enzyme immunoassay (EIA) and enzyme-linked immunospot (ELISPOT) interferon-gamma assays were positive in 34% of patients with an agreement of 83% (kappa=0.63). Tuberculin skin test (TST) was positive in 29% of patients and the agreement of TST with EIA and ELISPOT interferon-gamma assays was 85% (kappa=0.62) and 83% (kappa=0.57), respectively. Almost 50% of patients with history of TB had a positive in vitro test. In conclusion, we observed a high prevalence of latent TB and good agreement between the new in vitro tests that otherwise may continue to be positive long after developing TB disease.
Assuntos
Alcoolismo/complicações , Ensaio de Imunoadsorção Enzimática/métodos , Interferon gama/análise , Abuso de Substâncias por Via Intravenosa/complicações , Tuberculose/diagnóstico , Adulto , Estudos Transversais , Feminino , Humanos , Masculino , Pessoa de Meia-Idade , Prevalência , Kit de Reagentes para Diagnóstico , Espanha/epidemiologia , Centros de Tratamento de Abuso de Substâncias , Teste Tuberculínico , Tuberculose/complicações , Tuberculose/epidemiologiaRESUMO
Different antigenic extracts of Taenia solium and Taenia crassiceps were evaluated in connection with the detection of antibodies in patients with neurocysticercosis aimed at selecting immunorelevant antigens for the diagnosis of neurocysticercosis by means of the immunoenzymatic assay and immunoblotting. The vesicular fluid of T. crassiceps proved to be more sensitive (100%) and specific (86%). On using the immunoblotting technique it was also observed that this extract was the most sensitive and specific. Within the protein profile of the antigen the band of 18 kDa was mostly recognized by the serum and cerebrospinal fluid of patients with neurocysticercosis. The vesicular fluid of T. crassiceps represents an alternative in the optimization of the diagnosis of neurocysticercosis in the serum and cerebrospinal fluid and in the substitution of T. solium antigens due to its high sensitivity and specificity and to its easy obtention under controlled laboratory conditions.
Assuntos
Antígenos de Helmintos/imunologia , Cysticercus/imunologia , Neurocisticercose/diagnóstico , Taenia/imunologia , Animais , Humanos , Testes Imunológicos , Neurocisticercose/sangue , Sensibilidade e EspecificidadeRESUMO
A prospective study on the causal microorganism of vulvovaginitis was done to 100 ambulatory patients seen at a pediatric gynecology unit of a metropolitan hospital at Santiago, Chile, from november 1988 throughout july 1989. Samples of vaginal discharge were taken from each patient and studied for bacteria, fungi and trichomonas. Search of pinworms was also done in 55 patients by the transparent adhesive tape test. It was possible to confirm the etiology of vulvovaginitis in 81 cases. Bacteria were isolated in 68 of them, fungi in 4, Trichomonas vaginalis in one patient and pinworms in 8.