Rhinitis associated with pesticide exposure among commercial pesticide applicators in the Agricultural Health Study.

OBJECTIVES: Rhinitis is common, but the risk factors are not well described. To investigate the association between current rhinitis and pesticide use, we used data from 2245 Iowa commercial pesticide applicators in the Agricultural Health Study. METHODS: Using logistic regression models adjusted for age, education and growing up on a farm, we evaluated the association between current rhinitis and 34 pesticides used in the past year. RESULTS: 74% of commercial pesticide applicators reported at least one episode of rhinitis in the past year (current rhinitis). Five pesticides used in the past year were significantly positively associated with current rhinitis: the herbicides 2,4-D, glyphosate and petroleum oil, the insecticide diazinon and the fungicide benomyl. The association for 2,4-D and glyphosate was limited to individuals who used both in the past year (OR 1.42, 95% CI 1.14 to 1.77). Both petroleum oil and diazinon showed consistent evidence of an association with rhinitis, based on both current use and exposure-response models. We saw no evidence of confounding by common agricultural rhinitis triggers such as handling grain or hay. CONCLUSIONS: Exposure to pesticides may increase the risk of rhinitis.

Preovulatory changes in ovarian expression of collagenases and tissue metalloproteinase inhibitor messenger ribonucleic acid: role of eicosanoids.

The preovulatory surge of gonadotropins activates a cascade of proteolytic enzymes resulting in the rupture of the follicular wall and the release of a fertilizable ovum during ovulation. In the rat the process is initiated by a rise in follicular tissue-type plasminogen activator, produced predominantly in granulosa cells. Recent studies revealed a preovulatory increase in ovarian collagenolytic activity in vivo and an increase in activatable collagenase in vitro. In view of the complicated control of mammalian collagenase synthesis and activity by local inhibitors and activators, we examined the expression of ovarian interstitial and type IV collagenases and tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinase (TIMP) mRNA after an ovulatory stimulus. Ovarian mRNA was isolated from immature PMSG-treated rats 3, 6, and 9 h after hCG stimulation. Northern blot analyses revealed a mRNA of 1.7 kilobases (kb) hybridizing with the human interstitial collagenase cDNA probe. The levels of this mRNA showed a 25-fold increase between 3-6 h after hCG stimulation. The human cDNA probe of collagenase IV hybridized with a mRNA of 3.1 kb, which showed only a 4-fold increase 9 h after hCG treatment. The interstitial collagenase mRNA was expressed in both granulosa cells of preovulatory follicles and the residual ovarian tissue, whereas the expression of collagenase IV mRNA was limited to the residual tissue. Inhibitors of eicosanoid synthesis, previously shown to block ovulation and the LH/hCG-induced rise in ovarian collagenolysis, suppressed the gonadotropic stimulation of interstitial collagenase mRNA, but slightly stimulated that of collagenase IV. The mouse cDNA probe of TIMP hybridized with a 0.9-kb mRNA, which was stimulated by hCG to reach a maximum (7- to 8-fold increase) between 6-9 h after stimulation. TIMP was expressed and stimulated in both the granulosa cells and the residual tissue. Inhibitors of eicosanoid synthesis did not affect the gonadotropic stimulation of TIMP mRNA. These data support the suggested role of interstitial collagenase in follicle rupture and the essential role of eicosanoids in the mediation of gonadotropic stimulation of interstitial collagenase production and action. The observed stimulation of TIMP mRNA expression by the gonadotropin and the lack of any effect of eicosanoid synthesis inhibitors on this action of LH/hCG offer an additional mechanism by which these inhibitors may block ovulation. Thus, the suppression of ovulation by inhibitors of eicosanoid synthesis may result from selective inhibition of interstitial collagenase expression and undisturbed gonadotropin-stimulated TIMP expression.

Prospects for cost reductions from relaxing additional cross-border measures related to livestock trade.

Compared with the domestic trade in livestock, intra-communal trade across the European Union (EU) is subject to costly, additional veterinary measures. Short-distance transportation just across a border requires more measures than long-distance domestic transportation, while the need for such additional cross-border measures can be questioned. This study examined the prospects for cost reductions from relaxing additional cross-border measures related to trade within the cross-border region of the Netherlands (NL) and Germany (GER); that is, North Rhine Westphalia and Lower Saxony. The study constructed a deterministic spread-sheet cost model to calculate the costs of both routine veterinary measures (standard measures that apply to both domestic and cross-border transport) and additional cross-border measures (extra measures that only apply to cross-border transport) as applied in 2010. This model determined costs by stakeholder, region and livestock sector, and studied the prospects for cost reduction by calculating the costs after the relaxation of additional cross-border measures. The selection criteria for relaxing these measures were (1) a low expected added value on preventing contagious livestock diseases, (2) no expected additional veterinary risks in case of relaxation of measures and (3) reasonable cost-saving possibilities. The total cost of routine veterinary measures and additional cross-border measures for the cross-border region was €22.1 million, 58% (€12.7 million) of which came from additional cross-border measures. Two-thirds of this €12.7 million resulted from the trade in slaughter animals. The main cost items were veterinary checks on animals (twice in the case of slaughter animals), export certification and control of export documentation. Four additional cross-border measures met the selection criteria for relaxation. The relaxation of these measures could save €8.2 million (€5.0 million for NL and €3.2 million for GER) annually. Farmers would experience the greatest savings (99%), and most savings resulted from relaxing additional cross-border measures related to poultry (48%), mainly slaughter broilers (GER), and pigs (48%), mainly slaughter pigs (NL). In particular, the trade in slaughter animals (dead-end hosts) is subject to measures, such as veterinary checks on both sides of the border that might not contribute to preventing contagious livestock diseases. Therefore, this study concludes that there are several possibilities for reducing the costs of additional cross-border measures in both countries.

Delayed deep wound sepsis five years after hip-nailing: A case report.

A 66-year-old man developed infection in the lower margins of Hunter's canal five years after operation for an intracapsular hip fracture. The infection readily responded to removal of the foreign body, debridement of the abscess, and treatment with appropriate antibiotics. The sinogram was valuable in delineating the path and source of the infectious process.

Ovarian lipoxygenase activity and its regulation by gonadotropin in the rat.

In our previous study a dose-dependent blockage of follicular rupture at ovulation by inhibitors of lipoxygenase was demonstrated. Here the presence of 5-lipoxygenase activity in the whole ovary and in the Graafian follicle is estimated by a chemiluminescence assay using unlabeled arachidonic acid as substrate in the presence of luminol and by conversion of 14C-arachidonic acid into lipoxygenase products as separated by HPLC. Both approaches demonstrated lipoxygenase activity in whole ovarian homogenates and in homogenates of preovulatory Graafian follicles. Furthermore, within 6 h after stimulation in vivo with hCG, lipoxygenase activity was increased by 2-fold in the whole ovarian homogenate and by 5-fold in the follicular homogenate. These results confirm the presence of lipoxygenase in rat ovaries, and its stimulation by gonadotropin and thus corroborate the suggested involvement of lipoxygenase products in follicular rupture at ovulation.