Dietary intake of acrylamide and endometrial cancer risk in the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition cohort.

BACKGROUND: Three prospective studies have evaluated the association between dietary acrylamide intake and endometrial cancer (EC) risk with inconsistent results. The objective of this study was to evaluate the association between acrylamide intake and EC risk: for overall EC, for type-I EC, and in never smokers and never users of oral contraceptives (OCs). Smoking is a source of acrylamide, and OC use is a protective factor for EC risk. METHODS: Cox regression was used to estimate hazard ratios (HRs) for the association between acrylamide intake and EC risk in the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC) cohort. Acrylamide intake was estimated from the EU acrylamide monitoring database, which was matched with EPIC questionnaire-based food consumption data. Acrylamide intake was energy adjusted using the residual method. RESULTS: No associations were observed between acrylamide intake and overall EC (n=1382) or type-I EC risk (n=627). We observed increasing relative risks for type-I EC with increasing acrylamide intake among women who both never smoked and were non-users of OCs (HRQ5vsQ1: 1.97, 95% CI: 1.08-3.62; likelihood ratio test (LRT) P-value: 0.01, n=203). CONCLUSIONS: Dietary intake of acrylamide was not associated with overall or type-I EC risk; however, positive associations with type I were observed in women who were both non-users of OCs and never smokers.

Postmenopausal circulating levels of 2- and 16α-hydroxyestrone and risk of endometrial cancer.

BACKGROUND: It has been suggested that the relative importance of oestrogen-metabolising pathways may affect the risk of oestrogen-dependent tumours including endometrial cancer. One hypothesis is that the 2-hydroxy pathway is protective, whereas the 16α-hydroxy pathway is harmful. METHODS: We conducted a case-control study nested within three prospective cohorts to assess whether the circulating 2-hydroxyestrone : 16α-hydroxyestrone (2-OHE1 : 16α-OHE1) ratio is inversely associated with endometrial cancer risk in postmenopausal women. A total of 179 cases and 336 controls, matching cases on cohort, age and date of blood donation, were included. Levels of 2-OHE1 and 16α-OHE1 were measured using a monoclonal antibody-based enzyme assay. RESULTS: Endometrial cancer risk increased with increasing levels of both metabolites, with odds ratios in the top tertiles of 2.4 (95% CI=1.3, 4.6; P(trend)=0.007) for 2-OHE1 and 1.9 (95% CI=1.1, 3.5; P(trend)=0.03) for 16α-OHE1 in analyses adjusting for endometrial cancer risk factors. These associations were attenuated and no longer statistically significant after further adjustment for oestrone or oestradiol levels. No significant association was observed for the 2-OHE1 : 16α-OHE1 ratio. CONCLUSION: Our results do not support the hypothesis that greater metabolism of oestrogen via the 2-OH pathway, relative to the 16α-OH pathway, protects against endometrial cancer.

Oral contraceptive use and reproductive factors and risk of ovarian cancer in the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition.

BACKGROUND: It is well established that parity and use of oral contraceptives reduce the risk of ovarian cancer, but the associations with other reproductive variables are less clear. METHODS: We examined the associations of oral contraceptive use and reproductive factors with ovarian cancer risk in the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition. Among 327,396 eligible women, 878 developed ovarian cancer over an average of 9 years. Hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were estimated using Cox proportional hazard models stratified by centre and age, and adjusted for smoking status, body mass index, unilateral ovariectomy, simple hysterectomy, menopausal hormone therapy, and mutually adjusted for age at menarche, age at menopause, number of full-term pregnancies and duration of oral contraceptive use. RESULTS: Women who used oral contraceptives for 10 or more years had a significant 45% (HR, 0.55; 95% CI, 0.41-0.75) lower risk compared with users of 1 year or less (P-trend, <0.01). Compared with nulliparous women, parous women had a 29% (HR, 0.71; 95% CI, 0.59-0.87) lower risk, with an 8% reduction in risk for each additional pregnancy. A high age at menopause was associated with a higher risk of ovarian cancer (>52 vs ≤ 45 years: HR, 1.46; 95% CI, 1.06-1.99; P-trend, 0.02). Age at menarche, age at first full-term pregnancy, incomplete pregnancies and breastfeeding were not associated with risk. CONCLUSION: This study shows a strong protective association of oral contraceptives and parity with ovarian cancer risk, a higher risk with a late age at menopause, and no association with other reproductive factors.

Influence of dimensional stability of impression materials on the probability of acceptance of a prosthetic restoration.

The accuracy of rubber impression materials was evaluated by taking impressions of a steel model, pouring it with stone and comparing certain measurements between steel and stone models. It is assumed that acceptance is achieved when the difference in measurements is within permissible limits, defined by clinical criteria. A mathematical formulation of these criteria will lead to the concept of probability of acceptance. The probability is affected when the limits are changed. The particular case of satisfying two acceptance criteria that contain variables which are not statistically independent is considered, leading to the application of the bivariate normal distribution in the evaluation of acceptance probability.

Determination of thermal properties of impression materials.

Residual strains are important for dimensional accuracy of impression materials. When these strains are being calculated, knowledge of thermophysical constants is needed. This paper describes determination of thermal diffusivity, thermal conductivity, specific heat, heat of polymerization rate, and total heat of polymerization. The first two constants mentioned were obtained from an experiment in which transient heat conductivity was studied. The evaluation was based on an analytical solution of this problem. The remaining constants were derived by means of standard differential scanning calorimetry, DSC. Results from accurate, cost-efficient methods are given for three silicones and one polyether.

Acid conditioning combined with single-component and two-component dentin bonding agents.

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of the present study was to compare ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid conditioning and phosphoric acid conditioning of dentin in combination with two principally different commercial dentin bonding systems. METHOD AND MATERIALS: Twenty-one extracted human third molars were used. All teeth were caries free, and no teeth were root filled. In total, 29 pairs of dentin surfaces were obtained from 21 teeth. One dentin surface in each pair was etched with a 32% phosphoric acid gel for 15 seconds, and the opposite surface was etched with a 24% ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid gel for 3 minutes. One experimental group of 15 dentin surface pairs was subsequently bonded with All-Bond 2, a two-component system, and the other group of 14 pairs was bonded with Prime & Bond NT, a one-bottle adhesive. A flowable resin composite was inserted in the experimental cavity and light cured. Shear bond strength testing was performed according to the protocol of the International Organization for Standardization. RESULTS: The combination of conditioning with ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid and bonding with All-Bond 2 was significantly better than all other combinations, providing a shear bond strength that was 61% to 123% greater. CONCLUSION: Use of ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid in combination with All-Bond 2 resulted in a significantly greater bond strength to dentin than did conventional acid etching.

Retentive strength of dental composite to metal surfaces.

Retentive strength of the metal-composite interface was studied with tensile tests for 10-mm and 4-mm diameter specimens. In both series nonperforated and perforated metal surfaces with various numbers of holes were used. The specimens were tested after 1 day of storage in air and after thermocycling in water at 7 degrees C and 60 degrees C, respectively. The nonperforated specimens had the highest retentive strength values for both small and large specimens. The retentive strength decreased with increasing number of perforations and for nonperforated specimens with large retentive area. Thermocycling reduced the tensile force required to break the specimens by 4% to 50%. The fracture surface was mostly located close to the metal surface, indicating that this is the zone of stress concentration. With increasing length of the bond edge a reduction of the retentive strength was observed.