Ambient temperature and outpatient visits for acute exacerbation of chronic bronchitis in Shanghai: a time series analysis.

The association between ambient temperature and acute exacerbation of chronic bronchitis (AECB) was still unknown. Therefore, we performed an epidemiological study in a large hospital of Shanghai to explore the relationship about temperature and outpatient visit for AECB. We adopted a quasi-Poisson generalized additive models and distributed lag nonlinear models to estimate the accumulative effects of temperature on AECB across multiple days. We found significant non-linear effects of cold temperature on hospital visits for AECB, and the potential effect of cold temperature might last more than 2 weeks. The relative risks of extreme cold (first percentiles of temperature throughout the study period) and cold (10th percentile of temperature) temperature over lags 0-14 d were 2.98 [95% confidence intervals (CI): 1.77, 5.04] and 1.63 (95% CI: 1.21, 2.19), compared with the 25th percentile of temperature. However, we found no positive association between hospital visits and hot weather. This study showed that exposure to both extreme cold and cold temperatures were associated with increased outpatient visits for AECB in a large hospital of Shanghai.

Association between Ambient Air Pollution and Outpatient Visits for Acute Bronchitis in a Chinese City.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the short-term association between outdoor air pollution and outpatient visits for acute bronchitis, which is a rare subject of research in the mainland of China. METHODS: A time-series analysis was conducted to examine the association of outdoor air pollutants with hospital outpatient visits in Shanghai by using two-year daily data (2010-2011). RESULTS: Outdoor air pollution was found to be associated with an increased risk of outpatient visits for acute bronchitis in Shanghai. The effect estimates of air pollutants varied with the lag structures of the concentrations of the pollutants. For lag06, a 10 µg/m(3) increase in the concentrations of PM10, SO(2), and NO(2) corresponded to 0.94% (95% CI: 0.83%, 1.05%), 11.12% (95% CI: 10.76%, 11.48%), and 4.84% (95% CI: 4.49%, 5.18%) increases in hospital visits for acute bronchitis, respectively. These associations appeared to be stronger in females (P<0.05). Between-age differences were significant for SO(2) (P<0.05), and between-season differences were also significant for SO(2) (P<0.05). CONCLUSION: Our analyses have provided the first evidence that the current air pollution level in China has an effect on acute bronchitis and that the rationale for further limiting air pollution levels in Shanghai should be strengthened.

[Application of the national diagnostic criteria of occupational mercury poisoning].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the clinical manifestation of patients with renal injury induced by chronic mercury intoxication and the application of the diagnostic criteria of occupational mercury poisoning. METHODS: The clinical data of 8 patients with chronic occupational mercury intoxication were analysed and evaluated. RESULTS: All the observed clinical signs of chronic mercury intoxication correspond with the items of the diagnostic criteria of occupational mercury poisoning. The increasing beta2-MG was one of the clinical manifestations of renal injury induced by chronical mercury intoxication. The renal injury obviously was dose-dependent and reversible. CONCLUSIONS: The national diagnostic criteria of occupational mercury poisoning is practically valuable. The renal injury induced by chronic mercury intoxication should not be neglected.

[Effects of oxidative stress and NF-kappaB levels in peripheral blood mononuclear cells on development of silicosis].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the change of indicators of oxidative stress in serum and NF-kappaB in peripheral blood mononuclear cells of patients with silicosis, and explore the mechanism of the development of silicosis. METHODS: The subjects were divided into (1) 200 workers exposed to SiO2 for at least 1 years in a foundry served as the dust-exposure group; (2) 130 cases with silicosis (I phase silicosis 64 cases, II phase 46 cases III phase 20 cases) served as the silicosis group; (3) 32 cases with 0+ phase silicosis in the foundry served as the observed group,(4)100 subjects from a hotel served as the control group. The serum including superoxide dismutase (SOD), nitric oxide (NO), serum glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px), total antioxidant capacity (T-AOC), nitric oxide synthase (NOS), lipid malondialdehyde (MDA) and NF-kappaB protein levels in peripheral blood mononuclear cells were determined, respectively. RESULTS: Compared with the control group, NO levels in dust-exposed group and silicosis group significantly increased, and SOD decreased significantly (P < 0.05 or P < 0.01). Compared with the control group and dust-exposed group, T-AOC, NOS, MDA levels in silicosis group significantly increased (P < 0.05 or P < 0.01). GSH-Px in dust-exposed group and silicosis group were (231.164 +/- 36.484) and (270.469 +/- 39.228)U/ml, respectively which were significantly than that [(223.360 +/- 46.838) U/ml] in control group (P < 0.05 or P < 0.01), and there was significant difference of GSHPx between the silicosis group and the dust-exposed group significantly (P < 0.01) . GSH-Px level [(290.750 +/- 39.129) U/ml] in III phase silicosis group were significantly higher than those [(256.906 +/- 21.41) and (259.594 +/- 34.79) U/ml] in observation group and I phase silicosis group (P < 0.05). NF-kappaB levels [(72.06 +/- 9.12) and (85.25 +/- 11.64) ng/L] in dust-exposed group and silicosis group were significantly higher than that [(59.71 +/- 9.27) ng/L] in control group (P < 0.01), and there was significant difference of between the silicosis group and the dust-exposed group (P < 0.01). There was a positive correlation between serum GSH-Px level and the silicosis stages (r = 0.507, P < 0.01). Also there was a positive correlation between NF-kappaB level and silicosis stages, age, GSH-Px or NO levels (r = 0.376, 0.243, 0.233, 0.221, P < 0.01). CONCLUSION: The imbalance of oxidative and anti-oxidation system and the activation of NF-kappaB are related with the occurrence and development of silicosis. The monitoring of oxidative stress indicators and NF-kappaB is beneficial to the prediction and prognosis assessment of silicosis.

[Activity of esterases and effect of genetic polymorphism in workers exposed to organophosphorus pesticides].

OBJECTIVE: To study the activity of esterases, including butyrylcholinesterase (BchE), carboxylesterase (CarbE), paraoxonase (PonE) and acetylcholinesterase (AChE), and to explore the effect of genetic polymorphism on the activity of esterase for workers exposed to organophosphorus pesticides (OPs). METHODS: Two hundred and forty-one long term OPs directly exposed workers and 151 indirectly exposed workers in the same factory were taken as study group. One hundred and sixty unexposed persons were taken as control group. The activity of serum enzymes was measured and the polymorphic distribution was detected using 7900 genotype detecting system and CMOS Chip technique. The effect of long-term exposure to organophosphorus pesticides was analyzed. RESULTS: The activities of BchE, CarbE and PonE were independent on the gender or age in control group. Average values of Carb and BchE activities of directly and indirectly exposed workers were lower than those in control group respectively. PonE activity in directly exposed group was lower than that in control group. AChE activity in directly exposed group was lower than that in indirectly exposed group. All the differences were significant (P < 0.01). In the direct exposure group, the frequency of three variants of butyrylcholinesterase gene K (BCHE-K) polymorphism was 74.3%, 24.1% and 1.6% for UU, UK and KK respectively. Frequency of allele U and K was 0.863 and 0.137 respectively in the same group. Frequency of three variants of PON192 polymorphism was 15.0%, 45.5% and 39.5% for AA, AB and BB respectively in direct exposure group. Gene frequency of low activity (PON*A) and high activity (PON*B) was 0.378 and 0.622 respectively. Frequency of three variants of PON55 polymorphism was 96.2%, 3.8% and 0% for MM, LM and LL respectively in direct exposure group. Frequency of allele M and L was 0.981 and 0.019 respectively in the same group. The activity of PON was different in various genotypes of PON192 and PON55. CONCLUSION: The long-term exposure to OPs could inhibit the activities of CarbE, BchE, PonE and ACh E in different level. The genetic polymorphisms of PON192 and PON55 affect the activity of PonE, which is related to the detoxification of OPs and health impact.