Air pollution and related respiratory diseases: the experience of a local health authority in Liguria (north Italy).

BACKGROUND: Numerous epidemiological studies have shown that air pollution due to both industry and heavy traffic has short- and long-term effects on health. The study was carried out in an industrial area with heavy urban and motorway traffic in the Province of Genoa (Italy). METHODS: The study was carried out from June 2005 to July 2008. An epidemiologic study was conducted by monitoring an elementary/middle school situated in an area of recent industrial development and an elementary/middle school located in an area free from sources of industrial pollution. Furthermore, we conducted an investigation of workers in commercial premises situated in one area of heavy vehicular traffic. In the study areas, environmental monitoring campaigns were carried out in order to determine the association between indoor and outdoor pollution and respiratory disorders. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION: The study did not bring to light any specific health problems attributable with certainty to industrial emissions. The impact of pollution caused by motor traffic proved to be greater than that due to industrial emissions. More exhaustive sampling campaigns should be implemented in order to quantify the effects of specific sources of emissions and to correlate these sources with pollutants (industry, urban traffic, motorway traffic).

Metabolism of americium-241 in man: an unusual case of internal contamination of a child and his father.

The metabolism of americium-241 has been studied during an 8-year period in an adult male and his son who, at the ages of 50 and 4 years, respectively, were accidentally and unknowingly contaminated within their home by means of inhalation. Chelation therapy with calcium trisodium pentetate was more effective in enhancing the removal of americium-241 from the child than from the father.

Survey of domestic accidents in the elderly in the Province of Genoa (northern Italy).

INTRODUCTION: Accidents in the home are a major public health issue in most industrialised countries, as they are a frequent cause of injury and death. Moreover, since a considerable portion of such accidents involve elderly people, it is important to assess their social impact in this population. In Italy, the available data indicate that well over 3 million people per year suffer accidents in the home, and that this number is rising. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the number, characteristics and causes of domestic accidents among the elderly. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The study population was made up of subjects of both sexes aged between 65 and 92 years admitted to first aid units and emergency departments of hospitals in Genoa. The investigation was conducted by means of an ad hoc questionnaire designed to record the circumstances of the accident, the functional capacity of the subject involved, any risky behaviour enacted and the safety profile of the subject's home. RESULTS: The study enrolled 111 voluntary participants: 62 women and 49 men. At the time of the accident, subjects were engaged in the following activities: housework (36.9%) "rest" (14.5%), ablutions (10%), gardening (9%), leisure activities (8.1%), eating and drinking (2.7%). The most common injuries were bruises (39.6%), followed by fractures (23.4%) and cuts (23.4%); the frequency of other, some time more severe injures (burns, poisoning, asphyxia, crush injuries, etc.) was,fortunately, very low. Anyway, taking into account their consequences, their surveillance and prevention is very important. Most subjects were deemed to be in good health and, in 76% of cases, the safety profile of their houses proved to be satisfactory. DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS: The data collected during this survey are in line with those yielded by national and international studies. They show that the elderly are very vulnerable to domestic accidents and that, even in the event of only slight injury, the management of elderly victims requires a strong organisational commitment on the part of relatives and considerable financial resources for healthcare services. Falling proved to be the main cause of injury. Clearly, efforts to reduce the cost of accidents in the home should aim to implement preventive intervention among elderly people, since the elderly population is destined to grow as a result of increasing life expectancy. In particular, preventive action should focus on reducing the incidence of falls by eliminating risk-related structural features in domestic settings as far as possible and by raising public awareness of the problem through health education campaigns.

Silver zeolite antimicrobial activity in aluminium heating, ventilation and air conditioning system ducts.

INTRODUCTION: Air pollution in confined environments is a serious health problem, in that most people spend long periods indoors (in homes, offices, classrooms etc.). Some people (children, the elderly, heart disease patients, asthmatic or allergic subjects) are at greater risk because of their conditions of frailty. The growing use of air-conditioning systems in many public and private buildings aggravates this health risk, especially when these systems are not correctly installed or regularly serviced. The aim of our study was to verify the capacity of Ag+ ions to stop the growth of bacteria and moulds inside the ducts of Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning system ducts (HVAC) systems when these ducts were lined with active Ag+ ions zeolite-coated panels. MATERIAL AND METHODS: A Y-shaped HVAC model with two branches was used; one branch was made of traditional galvanized iron, as was the whole system, while the other was lined with active Ag+ zeolite-coated polyurethane panels. During the test, samples of dust present inside both ducts were collected and seeded in liquid and solid media to detect bacteria and moulds. The presence of bacteria was also sought in the air emerging from the outlets of both ducts. RESULTS: Tests made on samples of particulate collected from the two different ducts revealed a lower total bacterial load in the samples collected from the Ag+ zeolite-coated duct than in the samples from the traditional Zn galvanized duct. In addition, the values of bacterial load found in the air emerging from the Ag+ ions zeolite-lined duct were 5 times lower than those found in the air from the traditional galvanized iron duct. CONCLUSIONS: The utilization of Ag+ zeolite-coated panels in air-conditioning systems could improve the quality of the emerging air in comparison with traditional installations in galvanized iron. This innovation could prove particularly advantageous in the event of accidents during the installation of air-conditioning systems or of contaminated aerosols coming from outside.

Curium excretion studies in man and baboon: a predictive animal model.

A major rationale for performing metabolic research in laboratory animals is to obtain useful information which is applicable to man. Since it is usually impossible to determine many of the kinetic parameters which are responsible for the fate of a contaminant in inadvertently-exposed individuals, it is essential that well-controlled laboratory experimentation in animals be performed. In the present case, we will demonstrate how our experimental protocol, i.e. curium in the adult baboon, can provide a model from which to derive important characteristics of curium in man. To accomplish this goal, we have compared the retention and excretion patterns of curium in several men accidentally exposed via inhalation, burns, or puncture wounds with that of 243,244Cm citrate injected i.v. in nine adult baboons. Although many of the exposure conditions are different in considering the two primate species (human and non-human), biokinetic research in the baboon may serve to estimate tissue burdens and dose commitments in man. Comparison of the excretion rates of the nuclide in the urine of man and the baboon gives similar half times between days 10 and 50 post exposure.

Seroprevalence of bactericidal antibody against Neisseria meningitidis serogroup C in pre-vaccinal era: the Italian epidemiological scenario.

Meningococcal disease is particularly severe. The case-fatality rate is 7.78% in Europe and 10-14% in the USA. This paper reports the results of a sero-epidemiological study in Italy on meningitis due to Meningococcus C before the introduction of the monovalent conjugate vaccine. In 2003-2004, a total of 577 sera were collected in 17 of the 20 Italian Regions. Serum Bactericidal Assay (SBA) was performed by using rabbit complement serum according to standardized SBA. The results showed that the percentages of protected subjects decreased from 6 to 12 months of age, increased from 1 to 4 years, decreased again until the age of 8 years and from 13 to 16 years, and were particularly high in 9- and 17-year-old subjects. The geometric mean titre of bactericidal antibodies (SBAbs GMT) was low in subjects under 1 year of age, significantly increased in 1-9-year-old children and decreased in adolescents and young adults. Finally, in each one-year age-group, low levels of antibodies were observed in subjects under 1 year of age, in 10-year-old subjects and in 14-16-year-old adolescents. High titres were observed in 3-, 8-, 9- and 17-year-old subjects. Our results therefore indicate that meningococcus C has the highest probability of spreading among 1-4, 8-10 and 14-17-year-old subjects in Italy.

Effect of ethanol on the retention of americium-241 in the baboon liver.

The oral administration of ethyl alcohol enhanced the excretion of 241Am from the liver of a baboon by 2.5 times that of a control animal. After ethanol administration, increases in the total content of 241Am excreted in feces were accompanied by corresponding increases in fecal volumes, although administration of nonalcoholic cathartics would not be expected to produce a similar effect. The effectiveness of ethanol as a decorporating agent may result from its ability to mobilize intracellularly bound 241Am from the liver, thereby making the nuclide more available for metabolic secretory mechanisms occurring via liver-bile-fecal route.